By T. Scott Boatright
First year Choudrant Lady Aggies basketball coach Randy Tyler Roberson knew inexperience would cause some hiccups early on in the season, and they have, with CHS starting off the season at 4-7 after defeating Union Parish 62-35 on Tuesday.
“We’ve had some growing pains,” Roberson said. “And we knew we would. But the team has surprised me against a tough schedule, and we knew that going in. I guess I had forgotten how competitive Class B basketball is.”
Playing — and defeating — Class 3A Union Parish is something Roberson hopes to see her team build on.
“I think it’s a good thing,” Roberson said. “We’ve been playing a lot of JV games against bigger schools just trying to get experience like West Ouachita and Ruston do. So we’re working a lot with our younger kids just trying to get them ready. Getting our younger players that kind of big-team experience early on lets them know what to expect with these bigger teams coming in.
“We don’t have a lot of size. So we need that kind of thing.”
Sophomore Reese Brown has been a force for the Lady Aggies early on this season and led Choudrant with 22 points in the win over the Lady Farmers.
Senior Brelyn Pyle added 13 points against Union Parish while sophomore Sadie Jones added eight points and junior Abby Frazier chipped in with six.
While Addison Swift had only four points against the Lady Farmers, Roberson said it’s the junior’s leadership and defensive play that has been a big spark for her team early on.
“Addison has been playing awesome and is picking up a lot of minutes out on the court,” Roberson said. “She’s been an especially consistent part of our defense, and I preach defense to my players.”
Choudrant will play at Weston tonight before playing in the West Ouachita Tournament next Friday and Saturday.
The Lady Aggies will face Jonesboro-Hodge on Friday before taking on West Ouachita on Saturday.
“That should be a good tournament for us again playing against bigger schools and teams,” Roberson said. “It’s challenging now, but hopefully will make us a better team once it all starts getting real after the new year as district play gets closer.”
