Lady Indians fight through the end of slow season
The final results for the Lady Indians’ basketball season were rather meager this year, as they finished out their season 4-16, but as fourth-year head coach Summer Chorman noted, you can’t always judge a book by its cover, or a team by their winning percentage.
Coastal Point • File PhotoJasmine Holden awaits a rebound against Sussex Tech in a game earlier this year. The Lady Indians finished off the season at a dissapointing 4-16, but the girls played better this year than last and hope to continue to improve.
“It was sort of a rough season, record-wise,” said Chorman, “but compared to last year, we played a lot better. The scores were hard to compare, because 5 or 6 games, we were less than five points away, where last year, we were getting blown out. We’ve been playing a lot more competitively.”
The Lady Indians barely slipped against rival Nandua and in their first match-up against Lake Forest, by a single point.
“At times, it was noticeable that their teamwork together had improved, but for the most part, the development was individual skills,” Chorman said.
Chorman will be saying goodbye to three seniors after this year, with some significant plays through this season.
“We had some big players who will definitely be missed next year,” she said. “Some young girls are coming up who can fill their shoes, but it will probably be a little bit of a learning experience beginning next year, taking on the responsibility. We can pick up the slack, but we’re definitely losing some key players.”
Chorman, a Sussex Central grad herself, played in high school and college, and assistant coached at her high school alma mater before picking up at Indian River.
Chorman added that she’s enjoyed working with the girls each year, although for a high school science teacher, four months coaching out of the year is more than enough for her.
“Most of them participate in other school sports in the spring, but a few are going to try going to a camp in the summertime and others will play at the rec center in Ocean City,” she said.
Despite not making the cut for the state tournament, the girls finished the season with their chins up and minds set on the future.
“The South,” said Chorman, “because of its size, is generally a little bit weaker. The way the scheduling works is you pretty much play everyone in the South, then you choose from there who else you want to play.
“We took out a lot of the Caesar Rodneys and the Dovers and those teams that were beating us. It kind of benefited us, because we were playing teams that were a little closer to our caliber, and if we actually performed a little better, it could have actually helped us get into the tournament.”
The Lady Indians faced a lesser state tournament predicament than the IRHS boys team, where many of the South’s teams finished with records of .500 or worse, leading to a lower rating for teams who beat them — such as the Indians — and thus a North-heavy state tournament list. But the point system has still had an affect on the girls’ basketball league.
“It’s a catch 22,” Chorman said. “If I were more competitive, I would have probably been in the same boat, because there were some teams that finished pretty low. The guys definitely were more affected by the scheduling than us.”
