With the temperature starting to drop and the sun setting by 4:30 P.M., that means it’s time for basketball season. The girls have been vigorously training all through the off-season getting ready for the 2018-19 season. In what seems to be a very promising season, the girls are ready to get back to work and take home some W’s.

The girls basketball team is loaded with senior varsity veterans that hope to push the team towards an excellent season. With returning players such as Loyola-commit senior Samantha Galanopoulos, senior Sidney Hines, senior Sammie Simkins, and senior Lidia Fakhoury, this team is very well connected and loaded with talent. Head coach Kyle Braheny highlights these seniors and their efforts to build a strong team.

“If you look how this team is structured, we have a lot of seniors, so I’m looking for a lot of senior leadership, and really, that can take us a long way. A lot of these girls are returning, and I’m expecting it to be an easy transition, and it really has been,” Braheny said. “It’s been very nice and very refreshing that these girls come in already knowing what to expect.”

Senior Gaby Goldman could not agree more with Braheny.

“We have a lot of seniors on this team. We have a great chemistry on the court already, and we have a lot of athletic girls on this team. We’re going to bring it,” Goldman said.

Coming off a very strong summer season, Braheny is very excited to take the court in regular season.

“[The summer basketball league] went really well. They played hard, and it was very successful. They battled through it. Really, it was player driven. In the games, it was all them. They go to each other and help each other through it, and we had a very successful summer,” Braheny said.

Goldman is thankful for the opportunities the summer league offered the players.

“We’ve been playing basketball for what seems like almost everyday, especially during the summer. In summer, some of us went down to Notre Dame and we played a two-day tournament, where we ended up playing six games. We also had our summer league, and we played just around 30 games. Everyday we just came and brought it,” Goldman said.

With a squad of veterans and a very strong bond between them, the girls are really expecting a better record this season.

“Working as a team is coming along and we have really good chemistry. With the ten seniors, we work really well together and we talk well on the court. It all flows really well. I definitely think we’ll have a better record than last year,” senior Sammie Simkins said.

The girls first home game is on Tue., November 27 at 6:30 P.M. against Maine East.