By: Jillian Dlouhy –
Currently with a record of 9-8, after a hard-fought loss against 5th ranked Bellevue West on Jan. 28, and with only six regular season games left, the girls varsity basketball team has some tough games ahead. Having won four out of their last five games, the Knights are playing their best basketball of the season right now.
Sophomore Cassie Nash is working hard to help the Southeast girls basketball team earn a trip to state this year. Nash, who is a wing and point guard for the Knights, seems hopeful about the team’s chances at state. “We are working on playing for 32 minutes, and keeping it consistent,” she said. Mainly she believes that the varsity team needs to work on playing through the entire game, and starting off strong.
Cassie is a three sport athlete for Southeast, and this is her second year playing varsity basketball for head coach Kara Graham. Last year, Cassie started the season on the JV team, but later in the season played a few games on varsity. During her first varsity game, she made a three-pointer and happily remembers the moment. “I hadn’t warmed up my shot at all, [but] then I just got [the ball], and then I banked it.”
Cassie’s personal goal to help the team, is to become a more confident player. “[This season I want] to gain my confidence and to play [well] on the court,” she said. Cassie helped the team beat North Platte by scoring eight points in the game, bumping up the score against the Bulldogs to 61-24. In the coming two years Cassie will likely become more of a leader on the team, but for now, she is happy to help the team in any way that she can.
Nash’s older sister, Jasmyn, is a senior on varsity, and plays post for the Knights. Cassie enjoys playing on the same team as her sister, and is enthusiastic about working with her. “I honestly really like it. We work so [well] together,” she said. Usually the two sisters play on the court at the same time and help the team through their collaboration.
The Knights have some tough games coming up; this Friday, Feb. 3, they will play the Southwest Silverhawks at 5:45 at Southwest. Ultimately though, they are looking towards state, and working in practice to get there. They can accomplish this by taking the season one game at a time and playing a complete 32 minutes, during each game.