Personnel numbers may not be overwhelming, but Bayfield’s head girls basketball coach Lauren Moran would seemingly prefer quality to quantity as the 2022-23 season begins this week.
“That is the case,” she said Monday after practice. “We have basically seven returning varsity players, which feels pretty good. And we have two seniors again this year in Abria (Thayer) and Alaysia (Kremer), really natural leaders and role models that the girls look up to, so I feel good about their leadership.”
Juniors Lily Lewin, Michelle Kirk and Madison ‘Maddie’ Mead, plus sophomore Renae Foutz are among the second-year skipper’s returnees, as the Wolverines look to improve upon a dues-paying 1-19 campaign – which ended with a 51-23 loss at Montezuma-Cortez in the 3A Intermountain tournament’s lone play-in contest.
“It’s definitely nice, for sure, having a year under my belt,” Moran said. “I mean, I know there’s a lot I can do to keep improving and implementing new things while continuing to try to learn. And in a lot of ways I think that first year was just trying to keep my head above water; there’s definitely things I want to be more intentional about this year, which I just couldn’t quite introduce last year.”
“And I would say practice is going really well,” she continued. “The girls are definitely competing and working hard; I think they’re starting to come together as a team even though we’re just getting going. Overall it feels really positive in the gym.”
Having graduated only low-post cornerstone Abby Tate and guard Jordan Martindale from the ’21-22 roster, BHS will first see action at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at home versus now-5A Durango’s junior varsity.
“We’re definitely looking forward to it; they beat us pretty handily last year,” Moran said, alluding to DHS’ 49-25 victory. “I’m hoping we’re going to have a better showing, and I feel pretty confident that we can. But it’ll just be great to get that first game under our belt, and have a better sense of what we really need to work on going forward.”
The Wolverines will next travel to still-2A San Juan Basin Leaguers Dolores on the Dec. 6. BHS will then visit former IMLers Monte Vista – beginning their third season in the 3A/2A Southern Peaks – on Dec. 9.
2A SJBL member Telluride, against which BHS logged their lone win last winter, 47-26, then comes to BHS Gymnasium on Dec. 13. Bayfield will then host 4A Aztec (New Mexico) on Dec. 15 and 2A San Juan (Utah) on the Dec. 17.
Assisting Moran this season will be veteran JV coach Jamie Wursten. Former Wolverine Kyle Baker – a 2017 BHS graduate who played at Oklahoma Panhandle State University – will orchestrate C-team development.
“Tiarra Christensen actually moved to Utah,” Moran said. “The girls love her and everybody was really sad to see her go, but she had a work opportunity and I think it’s good for her to experience life outside of Bayfield; we’re all happy for her.”
“So we hired Kyle to take her place … and it’s really been a seamless transition because she has a lot to offer. Played a year of college ball and was also a kind of ‘student assistant,’ so it’s really nice to have her on the court.”
“I’m still looking at this as kind of a long-term program-building process, in that our goal – every day – whether it’s in practice or in a game, is to try and get 1% better,” Moran said. “And so far we’re doing that; I feel optimistic about the future, in that we’ll continue to make those positive strides.”
