There’s a lot of excitement in the air as Washington’s girls’ basketball team begins its second season under the direction of head coach Ralph Biggs. In his first season as bench boss, Biggs was named 2-A Eastern Plains Conference coach of the year. He led the Lady Pack to a 10-12 (4-6 EPC) record, and the girls nearly knocked off a North Pitt squad that went on to win the state championship.

The team has a lot of its key components back this season. Biggs and the Lady Pack are both looking forward to building on what they accomplished last season. They have their eyes set on a conference title and a berth in the playoffs.

Here’s what Biggs had to say ahead of Wednesday’s opener:

 

How preparing for this season is different:

“I’m not going to be surprised by as much. I know a little bit more of what to expect from the girls and how things go. Having nine girls from last year is going to help me with being comfortable and familiar. I don’t have to worry about how the girls are going to react if I yell, or how they’re going to react if we lose a game. I’ve pretty much got that under control now.”

 

What he’s expecting from the Lady Pack this season:

“More consistency and more effort than last year. I expect more know-how and more knowledge of the game. They won’t have to think as much because we’re doing a lot of things we did last year, so they can just play and react. Instead of thinking about what they should be doing, they will know what they should be doing and go about doing it.”

 

What he’s done in the offseason to become a better coach:

“I worked on my communication and thought about the way I express my thoughts, my ideas and what I want them to do. I try to find a way to reach the girls, and try to be flexible where it’s not just my way, it’s what they want to so we all fit in this together.”

 

What the team’s focus will be on the court this season:

“For the most part, they really know I want them to work on defense and ball handling. If you take care of the ball and play defense, you’re going to be fine. I see a lot more confidence in them.”

 

What some of the team’s goals are for the season:

“We’re trying to build on our strong finish. Our realistic benchmark? We want to win the conference. We see no reason why we can’t win conference and make the playoffs — make playoffs at the least, and winning conference is the ultimate goal.”

 

What players he’s going to lean on this season:

“For sure, Naiya Whitley and Daria (Jones) a lot. The twins (Cierra and Tierra Wiggins), we’re going to need a lot out of them. Nazayah Parker, we’re going to need a lot out of her. The younger girls are going to have to give us depth off the bench so that, as the game goes on, we don’t get tired. We want to wear other team down instead of them wearing us down.”

 

What he expects from Northern Nash on Wednesday:

“Northern Nash is a very strong team. They’re a physically strong and tough team. I’m glad we’re starting out with them so I can see how the girls react to a physical, well-coached opponent. I’m 50-50 on what to expect. Win or lose … it’s more of a measuring stick. We want to win conference games. These games are more about getting better. Winning makes you get better, but we want to have tough competition to expose our problems.”