(Oakland) Riverside has had a couple of dress rehearsals and now it is time for the real thing. The 2022-23 season opener for the Lady Dawgs will be against AHSTW on Tuesday.
KSOM will have the broadcast with a video stream at WesternIowaToday.com. Coach Mitch Rice fills us in on some of the bright spots from their preseason scrimmages. “We did a lot of things well. We move the ball a lot better already this year than we did last year. Just getting out in transition and doing the things we want to do. Just playing some good offensive basketball. Defensively we are trying to change up a few things and need to make sure we get in the right rotations and are really getting after the rebounds and boxing out.”
Riverside has five returning players from last year and they make up the starting lineup. That group features Sophia Taylor, Elly Henderson, Elyssa Amdor, Becca Cody, and Lydia Erickson. “I do really expect Sophia Taylor to have a big year for us this year. She put in a lot of work in the offseason. We hope to see that grow on the court and push us in the direction we want to go. We have our leading rebounder back in Elyssa Amdor, our leading scorer in Elly Henderson, our defensive stopper with Becca Cody who took a lot of charges. I really expect all five, including Lydia Erickson, to jump and make big improvements for us this year.”
Coach Rice admits AHSTW having played a couple of games will be a big advantage for their opponent. “Anytime you get game like opportunities that’s a great chance for your you to build and fix little issues that you can’t fix in practice.” The Lady Vikes are led by Delaney Goshorn who is averaging 19 points per game. “She’s a great player. You’ve got to be able to stop her inside and out. Their other players have improved. Ellie Peterson is a good ball player as well. The other girls you can tell have put in work over the summer.”
It’s a girl/boy doubleheader from Oakland. Game one tips at 6:00 p.m.
Riverside girls coach Mitch Rice:
