The ladies from Montcalm will have a new head coach this year, but it will be a familiar face.
Veteran head coach Cindy Havens has stepped down, but her daughter, Terra Havens has moved up from assistant coach to take over the reigns for the Generals.
While this will be her first year leading the girls basketball team, Fortune has also been the head coach of the successful volleyball team.
“I went to Montcalm, played basketball, softball and basketball at Montcalm and graduated from Montcalm,” Havens said. “I came back to coach and teach there. They know how much the school means to me as well. I am looking forward to it. Only two girls that are playing basketball, didn’t play volleyball. They are such a good bunch of girls.”
The Generals have a couple of challenges heading into the season.
One challenge will be replacing two strong guards lost to graduation, while the other will be limited bodies to put on the floor.
“I tell them all the time that they are few, but they are mighty,” Havens said. “They are all dedicated. They work hard and they all want to get better at all aspects of the game. Even my bigs are doing ball handling drills in their spare time.”
Kaileigh Hodges is the lone senior for Montcalm this year and she is coming off a stellar season on the volleyball court.
“She is a top-notch athlete that plays volleyball, basketball and softball. She could have been the best at whichever she wanted to be and volleyball was the one she picked,” Havens said. “She will be the small forward and sometimes move over to the big man role. What it comes down to for her is sheer athleticism. Even when she doesn’t quite know what is going on, her athleticism takes over. She is talented, rebounds well and will score for us underneath. She can also step out and score for us.”
Havens has three juniors led by Summer Williams who is described by the head coach as fully invested in basketball.
“Summer has been our go-to right now for leadership because she is very experienced in the sport,” Havens said. “She is a good rebounder and really good in the post. Summer has a good knack for the ball and has good court awareness. We will lean on her quite a bit.”
Junior Tori Sizemore will be asked to fill the gaps up top left by graduation, while fellow junior Carly McPeak will add more strength in the post.
“Tori has a lot of experience and is very versatile. I can step her in and out as I need to. She is smaller in height, but it very strong and will battle with players underneath,” Havens said. “Carly has played since her freshman year and is another big for us. Her improvement has been tremendous. Carly is a strong kid that will battle for rebounds which is big for us.”
Sophomores Taylor White and Hayley Kendrick will be thrown to the fire, so to speak, but Havens is confident the duo can step up to the challenge.
“Taylor has grown so much from her freshman year until now. Last year was big for her just learning the game. She has a really nice shot outside and will be key for us on defense because she is so quick. Hopefully she will help us get steals and score in transition,” Havens said.
Kendrick will likely drive the bus for Montcalm and have the ball in her hands a great deal.
“Hayley will handle the ball for us most of the time. She is very dedicated to basketball. She has worked really hard and her ball handling has improved tremendously,” Havens said. “I look for her to handle the pressure and be the one to run the offense. She earned some good experience last year, but she will have to take the reins on that this year. She is strong defensively and will help us with steals and easy buckets.”
Madyson Hudgins rounds out the roster. Hudgins is a new face on the team, but she is a very versatile player according to Havens.
“Madison is new to me. She is back this year and hasn’t played in a couple of years,” Havens said. “She is picking up quickly and is an athletic kid. We will move her around and like Tori, she can play inside and out. So far she looks good.”
The biggest challenge clearly is the limited numbers, but the first year coach and her girls are hitting that task head on.
“We have worked really hard to get in shape. They know what its going to take to play the style of basketball that we have played in the past,” Havens said. “We will have to build our endurance to run the entire game and put pressure on people. Hopefully by doing that we can utilize the quickness we have in our guards.”
Montcalm opens the season Nov. 29 at home when it hosts Liberty (R).
