LeBlond Girls Basketball Begins a New Era

(ST. JOSEPH, Mo.) The Bishop LeBlond girls basketball team realizes that many will not have high expectations for the Eagles after a two win season.

"We're probably doubted citywide," junior guard Dayle Dickens said.

And that has LeBlond motivated.

"I know our four returning seniors have a chip on their shoulder, and they're out to prove something," Eagles head coach Jeff Sullivan.

"Most people probably don't have too high expectations for us, but we have high expectations for ourselves," Dickens said. "We've been coming in here everyday working hard, and we'll hopefully individually improve and then improve as a team."

The Eagles hope to find that improvement with a new face on the bench.

Jeff Sullivan served as an assistant coach at the school in 1999. Now he is back as head coach of the girls basketball team, and in his short time there, he already has the respect of his team.

"Coach Sullivan expects a lot more of us," senior guard Danielle Beers said. "A lot more discipline in practice, and a lot more accountability for your actions."

Sullivan began getting the girls to buy in during the off-season, allowing LeBlond to hit the ground running once practice started.

"A lot of them participated this Summer, so the offensive principles, defensive principles, we put in a lot of those, and its carried on," Sullivan said. "We didn't have to start from scratch back at the first day of practice, so it did help a little bit this summer and some of them have picked it up really quick."

Now in a new era of Eagle basketball, the girls are ready to see their hard work pay off.
  
"No where to go but up," Dickens said. "We hope to, each game and every practice, just keep improving."

LeBlond breaks in with a game against Lafayette in the Savannah Tournament on November 27th.