By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
The early season area games continue as the Bennington and Solomon’s girl's basketball teams prepare for a mid-week matchup.
Bennington enters this contest 1-0 after a 39-29 win over Sylvan-Lucas while Solomon fell to 0-1 with a 52-14 loss at the hands of Burrton.
This matchup will feature two first-year head coaches with Bill Scheef taking over Solomon’s program, and Tracy Piepho stepping in for TJ Trout at Bennington.
The two are very familiar with each other after teaching together for 21 years at Bennington High School.
While this is a traditional area rivalry, neither team is focused on that element of the game coming into this one.
“Every game is a rivalry game for us,” Piepho said. “We take each game one at a time with the goal to improve every game and hopefully beat every team. It’s a point of emphasis that we should bring our A-game every single night, and if we don't I would be disappointed.”
As for Bill Scheef’s squad, they are still putting the pieces together with a team of all but two freshmen in the early goings of the season.
“For us, it's just small steps,” he said. “We’re trying to focus on small areas where we can see growth. Everyone we play is coming from a different place. In a sense, our biggest rival is ourselves and our ability to be the best version of "us" each day.”
Solomon played just five players in their season opener against Burrton but got some good production from senior Tyra Thompson who led the way with nine points.
Bennington was led by sophomore standout Kolbie Bartlett, who earned a double-double in the win over Sylvan-Lucas with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
“We came away from game one with an understanding of where improvements need to be made,” Piepho said. “We need to value the ball more and learn how to adjust our defense to how the game is being called. Excessive fouls led to quite a few free throw opportunities for Sylvan-Lucas which kept them in the game.”
For Solomon, this battle will be every bit as mental as it is physical with several first-year players still feeling out the varsity floor.
“We need to breathe, relax, and develop some more confidence individually and as a team,” Scheef said. “It would be great if we could be patient on the offensive end to try to shorten the game but we don’t want to have a tendency not to look at the basket. We’re still learning what it means to have shot selection.”
Tip-off between the Bulldogs and Gorillas is set for 6 pm at Bennington High School with the boys game to follow.
For more on both teams throughout the 2021-22 season, stay tuned to the Salina Post.