No matter what happens on the court this winter, the Cardinals Huskies already are guaranteed a winning season.
No, the Huskies aren’t being handed wins, but they are returning to the court after a one-year hiatus due to a lack of players last season, and that’s the biggest win of them all.
“With no girls team last year, that kind of puts Cardinal in a state of rebuilding the program from scratch,” said first-year head coach Kim Domen, who was an assistant with the program for seven years and also coached the eighth-grade team for a season. “Going from zero players to 14 players this season is a start, but we need to expand on that and get back to having a freshman, JV, and varsity team. With having a freshman and JV team, it helps so much with the progress of all players that need the extra time and touches to get better and have more game-like experiences. Throwing a bunch of freshmen on a varsity team is hard, and making them realize that varsity is bigger, faster, stronger and more experienced on all levels. Some have the mindset to play as a freshman on a varsity team and some don’t.”
The Huskies certainly face an uphill battle this season as all but one player will make her varsity debut this season.
“Heading into this season, based on what us coaches have seen thus far, we feel we’re young, inexperienced, but have a lot of basketball skills, and we will not go down without a fight,” Domen said. “The bond that this team has among everyone is something we haven’t seen and exciting to see.”
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While the Huskies lack high school experience, they do have plenty of talent.
Domen’s job is to fine-tune that talent and develop a game plan to minimize the inexperience and maximize what her players can handle on a game-by-game basis.
“The biggest challenges we’ll encounter this year would be inexperience,” Domen said. “We’re very young, mostly all freshmen. The girls need to remember that, yes, it’s going to be frustrating, and most teams are looking at our team as their prey. Mentally, we have to do a good job responding to the frustration, dust off the mistakes, and quickly get back in the game. No time for feeling sorry for yourself, it’s quick, move forward, steal a pass, get a rebound, set a pick, box someone out, get back on defense, it’s how they can help their team at that moment. It’s a mindset we as coaches have to instill in them to overcome these challenges they will face this year.”
Senior Anna Layman, a 5-foot-7 post/guard, is a returning starter from the 2021-2022 season when she was a sophomore.
Domen will lean on her to set the tone for her younger, more inexperienced teammates.
“She’s resilient and eager to get back on the court after not having a team last year and undergoing brain and foot surgery,” Domen said. “She’s ready for action.”
Three freshmen also are projected to start for the Huskies including Emily Pleva, a 5-foot-6 post/point guard, Ivy Kaminski, a 5-foot-6 guard/post, and Natalie Soltis, a 5-foot-5 point guard.
“(Emily has) an impeccable work ethic and is always willing to give 110 percent all the time and is totally focused,” Domen said. “Ivy is smooth and swift and very athletic. She has a total skill set and a high basketball IQ. She isn’t afraid to do the dirty work that needs to be done. Natalie is fearless, energetic, and quick. She’s not afraid to lay her body on the line and fight for what she wants.”
Cardinal’s fifth starter is a work in progress with sophomores Ali Puruczky and Brynley Kitzmiller, and freshmen Nova Young, Adelyn Grant, and Olivia Krebs competing for the spot.
Puruczky is a 5-foot-8 post and Kitzmiller is a 5-foot-7 post.
“Ali is strong around the basket with both hands and works hard on both ends of the court,” Domen said. “Brynley works extremely hard and is willing to do the right thing so she doesn’t get into bad habits.”
Young is a 5-foot-7 guard/post, Grant is a 5-foot-5 guard, and Krebs is a 5-foot-5 guard/post.
“Nova is a great shooter, hard worker and has the best basketball IQ on the court. She seeks to try and be the best she can be,” Domen said. “Adelyn is the best defensive player out there. She’s strong and smart and willing to take on any challenge. She’s always up for it no matter what. Olivia will be the best sixth man off the bench. She’s smart and works hard and isn’t afraid to do what needs to be done.”
Cardinal already has a lot to be proud of before the season even starts. Losing a program for a season and then returning with 14 girls eager to rebuild the team is its own reward.
But, the Huskies have plenty of team goals they’d like to accomplish this winter.
“Our team goals would be never give up, keep fighting, have confidence within themselves, dust off the mistakes, keep moving forward,” Domen said. “In order for our young team to be successful, we need to meet all of those goals. The rest will work itself out in due time. We’ll take our bumps, but it’s how we handle those bumps is the biggest test.”
