Lady Marlins: New year, new team, new focus





Eyeballing the action Port Aransas High School Lady Marlins Coach Stephanie Cowen watches her team practice on the court at Doyle Marek Gymnasium on a recent day as JV team members and Ginger Jones, assistant coach, also look on.

Eyeballing the action Port Aransas High School Lady Marlins Coach Stephanie Cowen watches her team practice on the court at Doyle Marek Gymnasium on a recent day as JV team members and Ginger Jones, assistant coach, also look on.


“The usual suspects” is how coach Stephanie Cowen describes opponents in the upcoming Lady Marlins basketball season.

The ladies won’t face Yorktown as part of District 31-1A this year, but powerhouses Pettus and Falls City remain in the lineup as teams the Port Aransas girls must once again overcome.

Up for the shot Port Aransas High School Lady Marlin basketball players, Brenna Martin, left, and Anna Roberson take part in a recent practice.

Up for the shot Port Aransas High School Lady Marlin basketball players, Brenna Martin, left, and Anna Roberson take part in a recent practice.


Cowen points out that the Falls City girls’ team, with whom Port Aransas split the district title last year, is already ranked statewide.

“Pettus is very quick,” she said. That, too, is a team that must be dealt with.

The Woodsboro Lady Eagles have a new coach, and Cowen said she knows little about the team so far this year.

“They may get some new kids (trying out),” she said.

The final team in the 31-1A lineup, Kenedy, is an unknown quantity; it’s the Lions’ first year competing against Port Aransas (they were a 2A school last year), and Cowen said she hasn’t had time to scout the team.

Here at home, Cowen’s varsity is carrying a roster of eight instead of the 10 she prefers, at least for the time being. Of those eight, five are seniors. One is a junior, one is a sophomore and one is a freshman.

“We are a different team from last year,” Cowen noted. “We have girls who may have played 10 minutes to get a rebound, and now they’ll maybe be playing 20-25 minutes.”

It’s going to be a period of adjustment for some of those starters.

Some of her junior varsity girls may see some varsity playing time, also.

“I’ll let them play both (junior varsity and varsity) for a little while, if I can,” Cowen said, adding that the chance to play junior varsity gives the girls experience without the varsity pressure.

Going into a series of scrimmages on Saturday, Oct. 30, Cowen said the Lady Marlins were still working on fundamentals – “Not because we’re lacking, but because it’s good (to work on fundamentals) every day.”

“There’s a lot more to learn,” she said.

Emerging from those scrimmages, Cowen seemed more ready to smile.

“I was very pleased with our play at the scrimmages this weekend,” she said. “Our guards are very quick and should be able to apply a lot of pressure to other teams’ ball handlers. All of our post kids offer a great inside presence. Chelsea (Perez, a senior at forward) and Anna (Roberson, a sophomore forward) both came up with blocks during the scrimmage, and Tarryn (Murray, a senior playing post) has great instinct and anticipation.”

The Lady Marlins lineup this year also includes freshman Savannah Ortiz at guard, senior Kelsey Ortiz at forward, senior Savanna Nixon at guard, senior Kalani Balcom at guard and junior Samantha Richardson at forward. On the sidelines, Cowen is assisted by Ginger Jones.

Cowen said mistakes made during the scrimmages were “correctable,” and added that she’s excited about that as the team heads into the season.

“We were able to see some very fast guards and also some good size this weekend, and I felt like we handled both well. I thought we gained a great deal of experience in one scrimmage … mostly just getting use to some new pieces and new roles.”

Cowen said the scrimmages put her team in the position of realizing just how many playing minutes there are in a basketball game and reminded them that they must stay focused late in the ball game, especially when they’re tired.

“Overall, I thought it was a great day,” she said.

Cowen wants fans to remember that this team is different from last year’s team and its focus is different.

“The team you see Friday, Nov. 12, (the first home game, against Odem, at 5 p.m.) will be different from the team you see at the end of district play,” she predicted.

Before then, the Lady Marlins open the season with a game on the road against Bloomington at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 9.

“I think they’re ready for their turn,” their coach smiled. “They’re ready to shine.”

View the Lady Marlins schedule online at www.portasouthjetty.com. Click on Hoops Schedules in the News menu bar on the left side of the page and select Lady Marlins. The schedule for the Marlins also is posted there.

2010-2011
Lady Marlins
NO. NAME, YEAR POS HT
3 SAVANNAH ORTIZ, 9 G 5’4”
4 KELLSEY ORTIZ, 12 F 5’6”
10 SAVANNA NIXON, 12 G 5’5”
12 KALANI BALCOM, 12 G 5’5”
15 CHELSEA PEREZ, 12 F 5’8”
23 ANNA ROBERSON, 10 P 5’10”
24 SAMANTHA RICHARDSON, 11 F 5’6”
25 TARRYN MURRAY, 12 P 5’7”



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