THOMASVILLE – The Lady Warriors basketball team may look a bit different this year under first year head coach Jerry Ridley. This is not Ridley’s first coaching experience. In fact, he has worked with the Brookwood boys basketball team for 14 of the last 17 years. Now, Ridley is taking on a girls team, who is looking for a turnaround year.

Last season the Lady Warriors finished with an overall record of 13-15 and finished region play in fifth with a record of 1-9.

“I think all of the girls, they want to compete. I think they’re going to compete and compete hard,” Ridley said. “Our theme on the back of the shirt is ‘relentless pursuit of excellence’ and that’s what we try to do everyday at practice.”

Assistant coach Rachel Kelso said she is seeing a spark run through the girls in the practices leading up to the season.

“The girls themselves, they are tapping into things in themselves that they haven’t seen before. They’re pushing harder down the floor,” Kelso said. “They’re being a lot more assertive as far as communicating with their teammates and knowing what to do before it even comes.”

Kelso also commented on what Ridley is bringing to the team, introducing new practices and strategies.

“I see them taking over the floor and having more opportunities to have the ball. They’re being introduced to some things that they have not seen before, and I think because they are going to discover their talents with all these new drills and the foundation that he’s giving them, it’s going to kind of rework the plays that they already know,” she said. 

The Lady Warriors will begin their season at home as they welcome in Byne Christian on Monday at 6:00 p.m.