GIRLS' PREVIEWS: Cougars hoping to continue improvement this year

Saturday, October 27, 2018
Baylee Osburn is one of many experienced North Putnam players returning this year.
Banner Graphic/JOEY BENNETT

Jarrod Duff is in his third year as the North Putnam coach, and is looking for the improvement his team has made over the past two years to continue.

He knew when he took over that the rebuilding job would take a while, but the Cougars increased their win total to eight last year and only lost one senior from last year’s squad.

“We had a good summer, and these kids have worked really hard in the weight room on conditioning and on their shooting,” he said. “Most of the girls on the team are also in advanced PE class with me during the day, and that is a huge difference in our team now from when I took over. We really committed to working hard in the weight room, and that’s going to pay off.”

Duff has also had his team working on their skills, and that should also pay off.

“We’re just hoping that provides benefits this year,” he said. “We’ve had a good first week and a half. The intensity and competitive ness in practice, plus the tempo, are pretty good so far.”

The Cougars averaged 30.2 points per game last year while allowing 42.2, and Duff knows those numbers must be reversed for the team to have more success.

“We still have a long way to go,” he said. “We still have to work on a lot of things, and I’m glad we don’t have a real game until next week. We have a lot of little things to improve on, and that’s not a surprise to me. The things that we need to get better at are ones that I knew were ones we needed to focus on.”

Many of the Cougar players have played varsity for several years now, and have lost more than their share of games.

Duff thinks his players are ready to help the program turn the corner.

“It’s tough to go through the struggle, and at times it’s been hard on them,” he said. “It’s been hard on them, and it’s been hard on our coaching staff. It’s just hard. The struggle is not easy, but it’s also something that you have to go through sometimes to get to where you want to be.

“I think our kids have competed and have worked hard on improving the last two years, but I think they have finally started to understand they were working hard but not hard enough. I don’t think they’re any doubt they’re tired of losing.”

Junior guard Hannah Sims led the team in scoring last year with 7.5 points per game, and also grabbed 3.6 rebounds. Junior Baylee Osburn added 3.6 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, while senior Payton Lyons scored 5.0 points and got 3.3 rebounds per game.

Duff has no idea what his lineup will be, heading into Saturday’s scrimmage with Cascade, and does not talk about wins and losses with his players.

“We talk about the process of things, and take every practice and drill one rep at a time, and pay attention to detail and do things right,” he said. “If we continue to get better at that, I think the end result is going to be more wins.”

The Cougars only went 1-22 in Duff’s first year.

“I knew there would be a lot of challenges that first year, and I wasn’t satisfied with the wins but I knew it was going to be a struggle,” he said. “We won eight games last year, and were more competitive in more games than the year before. A lot of people are excited about eight wins, and it was the most wins since going 12-10 in 2004-05. We’re going to have to work hard and continue to improve. We have a different mindset this year.”

One thing that could help is the school’s much-improved performance in the fall sports season by girls’ teams.

The school’s golf and cross country teams won county titles, while the soccer team greatly increased its win total and the volleyball team had a winning record for the first time in a few years.

Several of Duff’s players were on those teams.

“That progress is a direct result of our physical conditioning,” Duff said. “Football coach Sam Carnes and I are committed to making all of our athletes to be better athletes. He and I are working well together with a common vision of helping our kids to be better athletes. The longer we can do that will help to benefit all sports.”

The Cougars have a strong freshman class, several members of which were key players on fall sports teams.

Duff expects some of them to contribute for his team this year, but he isn’t sure which ones yet.

“I don’t have an idea of who is going to play how many minutes,” he said. “Every day is a competition, and you earn playing time in practice. That’s going to determine how much of a chance you will get in the game. We are still trying to figure things out.

“We’ll just keep working against each other in practice.”

Duff agrees the county, conference and sectional are tough.

“We have good basketball right now in this area,” he said. “The county is strong, and the conference and sectional are also strong. We have a challenge ahead of us, and hopefully we continue to improve. I think we’ll be more competitive and play better.”

2018-19 roster

PlayerYr.
Kayle PaceSr.
Kinzey YoungSr.
Payton LyonsSr.
Jaden DaySr.
Dana TennisJr.
Bradi GierkeJr.
Clarissa GibsonJr.
Baylee OsburnJr.
Hannah SimsJr.
Jaicey BurdineJr.
Reghan ChristySo.
Saydee ProctorSo.
Maddie LawlerSo.
Ciera BurdineSo.
Justice RiggenSo.
Ashley WeirFr.
Haley StevensonFr.
Brie MillerFr.
Marin DaviesFr.
Camryn WolfFr.
Kyla WillisFr.
Annabelle GrossFr.
Lydia ReedFr.

Coach: Jarrod Duff

2017-18 results (8-15)

North Vermillion, W 28-26

Crawfordsville, L 39-36

at Monrovia, won by forfeit

at Covington, W 49-43

Greencastle, L 37-19

Cloverdale, L 57-27

South Vermillion, L 77-47

Cloverdale, L 61-22

at South Putnam, L 46-29

at Sullivan, L 55-25

at Northview, L 46-8

at Riverton Parke, L 32-22

at North Montgomery, W 42-40

at Speedway, L 30-19

Indiana Deaf, L 43-33

West Vigo, W 39-33

Greencastle, L 53-17

at Edgewood, L 39-33

Southmont, L 28-27

at Turkey Run, W 41-33

Eminence, W 50-26

Sectional

Cascade, L 55-38

2018-19 schedule

(Game times 7:30 p.m. unless noted otherwise)

Nov. 1 – at North Vermillion

Nov. 6 – at Crawfordsville

Nov. 8 – Monrovia

Nov. 13 – Covington

Nov. 16 – vs. Greencastle in Putnam County Tournament, 6 p.m.

Nov. 17 – Consolation/finals

Nov. 20 – at South Vermillion

Nov. 27 – at Cloverdale

Nov. 30 – at South Putnam, 6 p.m.

Dec. 7 – Sullivan, 6 p.m.

Dec. 10 – at Indianapolis International, 7 p.m.

Dec. 14 – Northview, 6 p.m.

Dec. 15 – Riverton Parke, 6 p.m.

Dec. 20 – North Montgomery

Dec. 27 – Speedway Tourney

Jan. 4 – at West Vigo, 6 p.m.

Jan. 11 – at Greencastle 6 p.m.

Jan. 15 – at Southmont

Jan. 18 – WIC crossover (H)

Jan. 24 – at Eminence, 6:30 p.m.