Program trending on the positive side
By Dave Morrison for the register-herald
The month of November has been a long one for Independence coach Mark Cuthbert .
On the one hand , the Patriots Hall of Famer has been busy as an assistant coach with the football team , on its second deep run through the Thanksgiving holiday . On the other , he is busy as the girls basketball coach . It could be worse . There could be fall baseball , and yes , he also is an assistant coach with his brother Scott on the baseball team .
“ It ’ s tough , but we practice football right after school and I come straight to the girls ’ basketball practice ,” Cuthbert said during a Saturday morning workout just hours after the Patriots had knocked off nemesis Fairmont in the Class AA quarterfinals Nov . 18 . “ The girls have been with me , and they know the situation . The past two weeks we ’ ve had perfect attendance .”
And that is a good sign for Cuthbert , in his fourth year with the program .
He believes the Patriots are trending to the positive side , a year after finishing with a 5-13 record , the most wins since the 2018- 19 team finished 12-8 .
The Patriots held teams to just 48.1 points per game last year . The problem was scoring . They averaged just 29.5 points per
y y y y y y y y y y Independence Girls y y y y y y y y y y
Tina Laney / For The Register-Herald
Alli Hypes of Independence , left , gets around Kylee Barnes of Shady Spring during their game Feb . 2 .
game and lost to Class AA power PikeView in the sectional tournament 81-12 .
But Cuthbert , buoyed by his team ’ s perfect attendance and based on practice results , sees a different team coming back this winter .
“ This is probably the most athletic tea I ’ ve had ,” Cuthbert said . “ I ’ ve got some team playing travel ( ball ) and we have some girls who came out for the first time this year who were good middle school players . We ’ re going to take some lumps early but by the end of the year this could be one of the better teams I ’ ve had in these four years .”
Cuthbert said he plans to mix the lineups through the holidays and will have more of a set rotation when the calendar turns .
Two returning seniors will anchor the lineup , Jenna Harvey and Makayla Bolen .
“ Jenna is a great athlete , and she hustles ,” Cuthbert said . “ Her brother Jordan Harvey ( an all-state linebacker ) is an animal on the field and that ’ s how she plays on the court . She is going to have to become a starter and relax and just play . Makayla is a post player . She got her feet wet last year , and she comes from good genes ( her brother Zach was an outstanding basketball player at Independence ). Thise two are going to be our leaders .”
Allie Hypes , a shortstop on the softball team , is also going to see major minutes .
“ She embraces the role as our best defensive player ,” Cuthbert said . “ We put her on the other team ’ s best player and he has fought in that role for a couple of years .
Up-and-comers on the squad include Cameron Wooten Hailey Ratliff , Bella Green , Maddy Nelson and Zoey Bragg and all could also see varsity minutes for the Patriots this season .
“ We have several girls who can play ,” Cuthbert said . “ We have more girls who I feel can step in and get the job done than we have had here .”
There are a couple potential diamonds in the rough .
One is first-year high school player Lilly Jackson .
“ I watched her play in middle school and she was one of the best players in the area ,” Cuthbert said . “ I think she can surprise some people once she gets in the flow of things .”
Big things are expected down the road from Harmony Mills , a freshman .
“ She possibly could be the best player I ever had ,” said Cuthbert . “ She has to get used to the high school game , but she has a really good skill set . She can shoot , she can pass , she ’ s a five-star player .”
There is a vast difference in the fact the girls want to be in the gym .
“ We had preseason workouts , and we had all 14 show up , so that shows their dedication ,” said Cuthbert . “ That ’ s all you can ask for from kids . To improve the program , they have t want to as much as I do .”
The depth will be a major factor .
“ I feel like we can go eight , nine deep right now and that helps tremendously because you can sub in and sub out , you can change defenses , so the expectations are really high ,” Cuthbert said . “ But you ’ re still in the section with PikeView , Shady Spring has been good the last few years and Westside has always been good . Then they move Midland Trail into it . So , a five-team section is going to be tough .
“ We have to come to play every night and see how it goes ,” Cuthbert said .
WV SOUTH BASKETBALL • 15