NORTHAMPTON — Talent has rarely been in short supply lately for the Northampton girls basketball team.
Experience hasn’t been as plentiful. The Blue Devils were young.
They’re only getting older.
The confluence of talent and experience hasn’t created pressure, however.
“It’s an extra incentive to get the job done,” Northampton senior Megan McCarthy said.
Northampton has reached six straight postseason tournaments. The Blue Devils last got to Curry Hicks Cage in 2014, losing to Central in the title game. They last won Western Mass. in 2008.
Northampton’s youth last season — the Blue Devils only featured one senior — hurt the team playing on the road in a challenging Valley League. The Blue Devils went 7-2 at home in the regular season and won a home playoff game but lost nine of 12 road games.
“Night in, night out, you’re going to get challenged in our league,” Northampton coach Perry Messer said. “We probably had five or six games deiced by two or three points at the end of the year. Going on the road was tough. When you’re young, you have to learn how to win on the road.”
Whether on Elm Street or elsewhere, Northampton will lean on its two best players in the post: seniors McCarthy and Lauraine Joensen. Joensen averaged 16.7 points per game last season, while McCarthy scored nearly 12.
“Our high-low game is really unstoppable against a lot of teams,” McCarthy said. “If you’re going to guard me, Lauraine’s going to kill it in the basket every single time, or vice versa.”
INJURIES WON’T DAMPEN GRANBY’S OPTIMISM — The Rams’ top two scorers form last year, seniors Kate Sarnacki and Kate Sullivan, won’t see the floor while recovering from ACL surgeries. Coach Tom Burke isn’t crying “poor me.”
“I don’t want to bemoan the fact that we lost them and belittle the kids who are going to be here,” he said. “There’s a lot of kids with experience, and I probably would have thought another year of experience would be great. Now they’re getting thrown in the fire.”
Granby’s leading returning scorers are freshman Nora Young and junior Mallory Beauregard.
Young averaged six points per game last year.
“Nora’s grown, physically. She’s getting stronger,” Burke said. “She’s going to be a force this year for us.”
That doesn’t mean Sarnacki and Sullivan won’t make a mark on the season, though. They’re still at practices offering insights to younger players and helping Burke coach.
“Their attitude is tremendous. Even in practice, they are so enthusiastic,” Burke said. “It kind of feels like they’re still here. They’ll be a big influence for a lot of younger kids.”
BUILDING BLOCKS — Belchertown senior point guard Kayla Henry and center Cara McKenzie have played together since seventh grade.
They anchored the Orioles’ starting rotation last season and will provide steadying presences with three new starters this season.
“Yes, we have only two seniors, but of all the positions, when you have the point guard and the center it’s easier to fill the pieces around them,” Orioles coach Jay Woodcock said.
They also understand and appreciate each others’ contributions.
“Everyone knows she’s an incredible athlete and having her is just amazing,” McKenzie said of Henry. “There’s film of her getting around three defenders. Having someone as quick as her, as talented as her is great.”
Henry also knows what having a reliable big like McKenzie can do for a team.
“If I’m driving through the middle, I can lob it up and she’ll be there, and she gets like 95 percent of my missed shot rebounds. It’s insane,” Henry said.
BIG SHOES TO FILL — Senior Lexi Turgeon will play point guard for Hampshire Regional, taking the reins from five-year starter Chelsea Moussette.
Moussette finished her career with 1,107 points, and the Raiders made the tournament every year.
“I’m really excited to take over. I definitely learned a lot from Chelsea throughout the years of playing with her,” Turgeon said. “I’m really big on trying to find the open player when I can.”