Experimenting with different lineups in the absence of starter Hannah Deen, who will miss multiple weeks after sustaining a severe ankle sprain in the finale of the Heart of Texas tournament over the weekend, the Brownwood Lady Lions struggled with establishing their chemistry on the floor as they dropped a 25-21, 25-18, 25-11 home decision to Llano Tuesday night at Warren Gym.
Every Lady Lion that suited up saw significant time on the floor Tuesday, which second-year head coach Cheyanne Lovelady hopes will help the team over the long haul.
“It was a challenge for the girls with a new lineup and putting different people in different places, everybody played something new,” Lovelady said. “At least they got their feet wet and I hope this helps a lot. It was good for us to do this now instead of later. Hopefully in the long run we’ll be able to make adjustments quicker.”
Offensively for Brownwood, Aubrie Felux chalked up a team-high eight kills trailed by five from Miranda Northcutt, three from Demayha Hooker, and two apiece from Aniah Hines and Trinity Roberts.
Icess Hall dished out nine assists, Hines contributed seven, and Jentry Coalson was credited with one.
Felux also served all three of Brownwood’s aces.
Defensively for the Lady Lions, Maddi Scott tallied eight digs followed by seven each from Felux and Hines, four from Icess Hall, two each from Coalson and Inylah Hall, and one apiece from Hooker, Jakayla Peek and Peyton Pena.
Northcutt registered both of the blocks for the Lady Lions.
The Lady Lions (5-9) are back in action Thursday at the Albany tournament facing host Albany at 9 a.m., Rotan at 11 a.m., and Coleman at 1 p.m. in pool play. Bracket play games will take place Saturday.
As for what Lovelady hopes to the see from the Lady Lions over the weekend, she said, “I want to see more confidence. I was looking at so many new things today, but I just want the girls to be confident. They all know how to play at every position, so I want to see them play with confidence at the tournament where ever they’re needed.”