Lady Jags equipped for big season in Class 7A

Spain Park High School girls basketball coach Mike Chase believes his team belongs in the conversation as one of the top teams in Class 7A.

But he also recognizes there is plenty of work ahead of the Lady Jags if they are to find themselves at the top of the mountain come March. And they will no doubt be challenged in the midst of a “monster schedule.”

“Of our 30 regular season games, 20 of them are going to be knock-out drag-outs,” Chase said.

On that schedule are the likes of Madison Academy, Central-Tuscaloosa, Hoover, Hewitt-Trussville, Hazel Green, Ramsay and Rogers to put the Lady Jags through the ringer.

While Chase acknowledges the road will be tough and that this year’s team will likely need some time to become a complete product, he believes the talent is in place to put together a successful season.

“Our practices are going to be good. They’re going to be really competitive,” said Chase, noting the Lady Jags can easily go at least 10 deep to provide strong 5-on-5 practices.

The most notable name for the Lady Jags is star guard Sarah Ashlee Barker, a University of Georgia signee whom Chase calls the best player in the state. At 6 feet tall, Barker can and will do it all at an elite level, from ball-handling to scoring to rebounding to defending. The scary news for opponents is that she’s still improving.

“We’ve been working on her mid-range game, 3-point game and making good passes,” Chase said.

Knowing the likelihood of opposing teams making it an emphasis to stop Barker at all costs, Chase is still searching for additional players he feels comfortable handling the ball in critical situations.

“I think teams are going to throw more junk at us to make us play more non-conventional basketball,” Chase said. “I think teams are going to really gear themselves up and say we’re not going to let Sarah Ashlee beat us.”

Ahrielle Parks was able to handle those duties effectively for the Lady Jags in recent years, but now Chase will need to train up others to do the same. In an effort to be prepared to combat those scenarios, he’s had guards Camille Chase, Avery Masdon and Mackenzie Culpepper go against Barker in practice.

“If you can do it against her, you can do it against anyone on our schedule,” Chase said.

The Lady Jags will get contributions from players and young and old. Barker and shooting guard Kamryn Corey are the two seniors. St. Clair County transfer Jaycee Haynes, Masdon and forward Stephanie Tooson are the team’s juniors. Culpepper (also a track and field standout), Chase and Alex Baskin are the sophomores, with Haley Russell, Katie Flannery and Alanah Pooler all freshmen expected to play significant roles. Eighth-grader Tatum Ahlemeyer will also see time with the varsity team.

Last year ended with a tough-to-swallow pill, as the Lady Jags fell to state runner-up Hewitt-Trussville in the regional tournament after defeating the Huskies four times in the regular season. Class 7A, Area 6 promises to be tough again, with Hewitt-Trussville still expected to be strong, Vestavia Hills rapidly improving and an always solid Mountain Brook program.

“I’m definitely excited about the year,” Chase said.