Columbia’s rebuilding year came to an end Feb. 8 in the first round of the Region 7-4 Tournament as the Lady Wildcats were beat 57-25 by Lawrence County.
The Lady Wildcats (2-18) had a rough season and drew a difficult matchup with a Lawrence County team that won seven district games during the regular season.
“Lawrence County was really big, athletic and moved well, so it’s just about learning to move and be more active,” Columbia head coach Charlie James said. “We have to be more active and pay more attention to details. We have to finish better at the basket — we had opportunities we just didn’t take advantage of. We have to be able to take advantage of opportunities when they present themselves.”
James said the future looks good for the Lady Wildcats with their talent and athleticism, but everyone has to get better across the board with their skills and fundamentals.
“We have to get better fundamentally and learn to play hard for 32 minutes. Having so many young girls, they have to understand it’s a 32-minute process. We had some coming from junior high and just aren’t used to playing that many minutes.”
Columbia is graduating Patrice Oatis and Ashayla Abram, and James thanked them for all they have meant to the program for the past four years.
“I wish the season could have been better for them,” he said. “Even though we came up short, I’m very proud of their accomplishments.”
