Girls basketball: La Salle-Peru aiming for hardware with new coach, strong core

There will be a lot of change for the La Salle-Peru girls basketball team this season.

Adam Spencer takes over as the team’s head coach after Hollis Vickery retired following a 12-season run that ended with a program-record 18 wins last winter.

The Cavaliers also return just four players with significant varsity experience.

“Coach Spencer has made it very easy to adapt to a new coach this year,” said senior Brooklyn Ficek, a three-time NewsTribune All-Area pick who has committed to NCAA Division II Wisconsin-Parkside. “He makes everyone work as a team, and we all get along very well.

“Spencer has started completely from scratch. We have a whole new offense and defense.”

The offense will be built around a trio of returning guards — Ficek, classmate Taylor Martyn and junior Addison Duttlinger.

Junior Bailey Pode, who was moved up to varsity midway through last season, will contribute as a stretch forward who can play on the wing or inside, while seniors Olivia Shetterly (6 feet) and Emma Garretson (5-11), who missed last season with injury, are expected to provide inside scoring. Garretson can also play on the wing.

Juniors Kaylee Abens and Jasmine Garman, who is new to the district, also will contribute.

“We’re going to try to spread it out,” Spencer said. “We’ll do some motion offense, some dribble drives and some more modern stuff. We’ll try to get the guards out in space, have them lead the way and create some easy buckets for the post players.”

Ficek led the area in scoring last season at 16.1 points per game and is closing in on 1,000 career points. She also dished out three assists per game as a junior.

“She knows how to play basketball,” Spencer said. “She can break people down one-on-one. We’re hoping to get the ball in her hands and get her a little bit easier looks. Looking at tape, they’re doubling her at the volleyball line. We’re trying to get her in some different positions, maybe get her coming off screens.

“She can get baskets in a hurry. She handles the ball great. She’s going to be the leader of the squad.”

Defensively, the Cavaliers will play man-to-man after running a 2-3 zone last season.

Ficek, Duttlinger, Martyn and Abens will be solid on the perimeter, while Spencer described Pode as an “energy player” who can guard players who are smaller or bigger than her.

“We’ll try to get a little ball pressure,” Spencer said. “We have athleticism on the outside. We’re telling them to guard three feet to the left and right, contain their girl, play help, force skip passes and stuff. We’ll try to contest stuff instead of giving up more gaps and more shots in the zone.”

Spencer expects the Cavs to be strong rebounding, led by Shetterly, Garretson and Pode.

“Shetterly is tall and strong. Same with Emma. They’re stronger than they were before their injuries, because they had nothing to do but lift weights and rehab,” Spencer said.

“It’s all about effort. If we play hard enough, we should be able to get out and go.”

The Cavs are looking to compete for the Interstate 8 Conference title and peak in the postseason.

“We want to get more comfortable and build on what we did in the summer,” Spencer said. “When you have eight new players on a varsity team, you need to mesh. We’re trying to figure it out. Hopefully, we can win a few games while we’re figuring it out, and we can play our best basketball in late January and early February.”

L-P is hoping that leads to the program’s first regional championship since 1990-91.

“I definitely expect us to hopefully go pretty far this season,” Ficek said. “I think we could have a chance to go to sectional if we all play and work as hard as I know we can.”