LYNN — Lynn English’s girls basketball team is coming off a 4-16 season, but if you ask second-year coach Sydney Brennan, her Lady Bulldogs are ready to wreak havoc on the hardwood.
And, learn from last year’s “bumps.
“Last year, it was my first year with the girls and their first year with me, and we definitely had our bumps in the road,” said Brennan, a guard during her days at Bishop Fenwick. “We had a lot of really close games that we only lost by four or five points, so this year, a big thing that we are focusing on is just finishing games out and being consistent throughout the entire game.”
After a scrimmage against Marblehead on Monday, English will be away from its home court for five consecutive games against Lynn Classical, Winthrop, Salem, Revere, and KIPP Academy.
“Our out-of-conference [schedule] matches our skill level and I think we have a really good chance of doing great in our out-of-conference games,” Brennan said. “And then, with our in-conference games, like I said, all of those games were very close and none of them were huge losses, so just really working with the girls on finishing from start to finish is a big focus this season.”
English’s senior captains are Alisha Soto, Amara Flores, and Saniya Patton.
“They were really strong players as juniors last season and I was really glad I had them as juniors,” Brennan said. “They have been working in the offseason with the underclassmen in the fall and getting everybody more prepared this year come tryouts.”
The incoming juniors aren’t too shabby, either, according to Brennan.
“Two of my juniors, Jayleen Novas-Rivera and Dayana Hios, have really fantastic guard skills and IQ,” Brennan said. “I think those two are really going to show up this year, especially on defense.”
With more time under its belt, the team is looking to build chemistry on and off the court.
“Because the girls and I have one year under our belts together, we are all much more comfortable together. They know what my expectations are [and] I know what they are capable of, so I have noticed the girls being more optimistic and more ready to go,” Brennan said. “They know if I say something, I don’t have to explain it. They know exactly what I am doing, so that has been really nice to have this year and have that foundation set, so we can just build off it.”
The Lady Bulldogs have big aspirations this winter. But first, a test in the Lynn City Tournament.
“Short-term, we have the winter Lynn City Tournament and I think one of our goals is to win that tournament. We play KIPP the first game and then whoever wins Lynn Tech vs. Lynn Classical, if we win,” Brennan said. “That would be a huge win for the team, especially being so early in the season to build momentum. I think another goal would be to win all our out-of-conference games to give us that stability and encouragement in our in-league games.”
But that’s just short term, as Brennan and company have bigger plans.
“We have a couple of goals. One of our goals last year was to make the playoffs and unfortunately, we didn’t do it, but that is definitely something that is realistic this year because of the way our schedule is set up,” she said. “That is our main goal.”
Owen Finn is a student at Endicott College studying journalism
