The first practice for winter sports will take place on Nov. 17, and with the new season coming up, the basketball teams are preparing for the long season of winter sports by setting goals personally and as a team.
Gabby Santos is the head coach of the girls basketball team and this is her second year coaching and her fifth year being involved in the program. Her experience comes as a player in high school and now as a coach. “Having different coaches growing up, those techniques that stuck the best for me from each of those people, or maybe the things that didn’t work for me, I can reapply for somebody,” Santos said.
Santos, who is relatively new to coaching high school basketball, feels that there has been a lack of consistency when it comes to coaches. “I think the hardest thing with girls basketball is there hasn’t been a lot of consistency in coaching. Every few years, life happens and things change; and we’ve had a lot of change, especially if you compare it to the boys program, who had the Vecchio’s for 40 plus years,” Santos said.
Although there have been some significant changes, Santos hopes to unify the boys and girls teams more. “I think that especially with Nunley in the boys program right now as head coach, we’re collaborating a lot. He’s going to coach differently than me, but there are areas where we can build a basketball program and connect on fundraising and culture,” Santos said.
The merging of the two teams is important to Santos. “I want that culture of Manitou basketball. It’s not Manitou boys basketball. It’s not Manitou girls basketball. It’s a unity thing,” Santos said.
Last year the team went 10-13. Moving forward, Santos hopes for improvement. “We’re playing similar teams, so it’s going to be really easy to compare wins and losses; but also those scores, right? Are we winning games by bigger margins than we won last year? Do we flip so we’re on top in those games that are tougher? Are we closing the gap in terms of keeping them to lower points and scoring more ourselves?” Santos said.
With returning players who know the team strategies and plays, Santos says they plan on building from the familiarity of the players. “I think our biggest strength is we’ve got a team that is really excited for basketball; and so when we’re stepping up to that challenge, everyone’s really excited to be here. Also we’re all coming back. It’s a pretty similar team to last year, so we know our offense and have some solid defenses that we’re building off of. It’s not a new slate,” Santos said.
Being new to coaching means Santos also sometimes needs advice from others. Santos gets help from a friend who used to work in the building with her and has had years of coaching experience, Brian Brown. “Brown might not be in the building, but he will be somebody that I lean on for that coaching advice. It’s nice to have somebody with so much experience, that we have a lot of points of reference to talk to, not only theoretical knowledge, but he can talk through those practical things with me.”
Along with team goals, players make personal goals, like Ariel Gomez (10) who hopes to improve overall as a player. “My personal goals for the season are to have high stats and be a good team player,” Gomez said.
Gomez plays basketball for the connections she makes with others. “I’d have to say, getting to know more people and connecting,” Gomez said.
Maddison Clinage (10) also set goals for the upcoming season. “I want to improve and get more playing time. I really want to enjoy this season because last season I was just stressed out for a lot of it,” Clinage said.
All teams have strengths and weaknesses, and to Gomez, the biggest struggle this season might be communication. “I think getting the team to communicate and actually run the play might be challenging,” Gomez said.
Clinage looks up to the upperclassman, specifically Brooklyn Sheffield (12). “I really look up to Brooklyn. I strive to be as good as her. I feel like a lot of the seniors are very nice and kind, and they’re very open to giving a lot of the underclassmen who need to improve more advice and being very genuine about it,” Clinage said.
Gomez feels that the team works well together. “Everyone knows each other and they have good chemistry,” she said.
She also admires Sheffield. “I think Brooklyn Sheffield is very determined and strong,” Gomez said.
The Mustangs play their first home game of the season on December 2 at 5:30pm.
