The Lady Bison Basketball team, coached by Missy Helsel, is officially beginning the 2021-22 season. Six letter winners from the previous season have returned which include, Alaina Fedder, Emma Hipps, Lauryn Kitchen, Riley Ryen, Cayleigh Walker, and Alayna Winters. The team is also coached by five assistant coaches, Mandy Wolfel, Sandy Bailor, Corey Bookhamer, Racheal Thompson, and McLain Alt.

Coach Helsel said her goals are for this season are “To establish a culture of success built on the foundation of solid skill level and mental preparedness.  This group of girls is full of potential, both on and off the court. Each of them will be a contributor this year and for that I am grateful to have a full roster to field teams at all levels for our program.  Obviously, we want to win games, be a contender in the Mountain League, have a winning season and move onto post season play.”

What will your challenges be? “One challenge I face is coming on board with a group of girls who have played the game but will need to learn a new system in a short amount of time.”

This is Coach Helsel’s first season coaching the Lady Bison Basketball Team.

What is your favorite thing about coaching? ”My favorite part of coaching is watching the players learn, develop, grow through playing the game of basketball, being a part of a team, building new friendships, laughing, crying, winning, losing, all the emotions that they learn to manage to help them succeed as young adults and move onto the next chapter of their life.”

How does someone join the team if interested? ”Any potential players can reach out to myself, any of the coaches or inquire at the Athletic Administration Office at the High School to become a part of our Lady Bison Program. They can send a text to:  81010  Text this message:  @afcdegd”

Coach Helsel explains there are many new faces who are excited to play basketball with a gymnasium full of their friends and family cheering them on.