In 2016-17, Benton Academy had one of the worst junior high basketball seasons in the school’s history.
The Lady Raiders were unable to win a game all season.
They averaged six points per game.
There was a looming question when each quarter began of whether or not they would score at all.
Their season high for scoring was 16 points in a blowout loss… and that was their biggest moment of celebration for the year.
At their lowest point, rival Tri-County Academy defeated them 43-1.
They struggled with the fundamentals, and their confidence as individual players was shot.
A revitalization was desperately needed.
Benton Academy hired Casey Arbuckle to do just that.
When she arrived and began her work, Arbuckle quickly realized there was a lot of work to be done.
“When we first started, they would say it was too hard,” Arbuckle said. “There was mental and physical weakness. I had girls who couldn’t bench the bar, and I’m not just talking about seventh graders. We had ninth graders who couldn’t. They couldn’t get up and down the bleachers. We couldn’t do suicides without having to find the trashcans.”
The internal issues also went beyond the physical nature.
“There were girls that had some attitude issues,” Arbuckle said. “They didn’t like the workouts. They didn’t like the toughness. We had girls that made me want to beat my head against a brick wall.”
Changes began to ripple through the team, and their toughness began to shine through as the work continued.
Those same group of girls that nearly drove Arbuckle insane showed signs of becoming the team she envisioned.
They played two games that went into overtime and won both.
They played four more extremely tight ball games and won three out of four.
They beat Greenville Christian 45-30 on the road.
“For a group that won zero ball games last year to what we did this year was just massive,” Arbuckle said. “They finally started to realize that they were not just better than they were. They were good. There has been a vast difference this year between last year and this year.”
With a chance to reach their ultimate goal of reaching the district tournament, the Lady Raiders took the floor against Tri-County Academy, needing to win by more than 10 points to move on past the regular season.
As rivalries can be, the game was a competitive one.
Each team had its moments throughout the heated first three quarters.
Benton took a lead into the fourth quarter, but foul trouble helped the Lady Rebels close the gap and take the lead.
On the final 1:15, there were three lead changes.
Benton regained the lead. Tri-County took it back.
BA seventh grader Gracie Manor was fouled and sent to the line, where she nailed both, giving her team a 29-27 lead with 0:28.9 remaining.
Although the remaining time seemed to be very little, it was an eternity for Arbuckle.
“That amount of time was so terrifying,” Arbuckle said. “It was like watching paint dry. I needed those girls to get that win. I called a timeout and went over what was going to happen. We needed to play insane defense.”
For 0:17 seconds, they did just that, but then a TCA post player left wide open on the backside block. Luckily for Arbuckle and the Lady Raiders, TCA called a timeout in that moment.
After the timeout, the Lady Raiders stifled and overwhelmed their opponent from Flora, stopping them from scoring a late basket.
The Lady Raiders won the game 29-27, defeating the team that thrashed them so greatly a year ago.
In any other circumstance, they would have rejoiced.
They overcame their rival, won a 12th game, and once again put up 25+ points.
But there was a sadness that permeated the room.
They won, but they did not win by enough to make the district tournament.
Arbuckle was thrilled with the win.
Her team, however, was noticeably less excited.
“I just wanted them to win the game,” Arbuckle said. “For confidence purposes, I wanted them to win. I went into the locker room fired up, and I thought they would be so excited. When I got in there, they asked, ‘We don’t get to go to the tournament, do we?’ They’re now so competitive that the win didn’t even matter. They were mad that they didn’t score more and win by more. That was the best thing that they could have done.”
In 2017-18, the Lady Raiders went 12-14 and averaged 28 points per game.
It was a totally different team with many of the same faces.
There were games where Benton scored over 40 points, a far cry from the team that celebrated scoring 16 points in a blowout.
Seventh Gracie Manor led the Lady Raiders with 7.3 points per game and 3.5 steals per game. Manor also averaged 3.1 rebounds and a blocked shot per game.
Jewell Vandanvere scored 6 points per game, had 1.7 steals per game, and hauled in 3 rebounds per game.
Sunny Sellers was the leader in rebounds with 4.6 per game to go with 3 points and 1.3 steals per game.
Lucy Rodgers hauled in 3.9 rebounds and scored 2.5 points per game.
The future is bright for the Lady Raiders, and Arbuckle has already noticed something special about the work ethic of her team.
“We went from 0 to 12 wins this year,” Arbuckle said. “The question now becomes whether or not we can go from 12 to 20 wins next year. Things have changed now. I went into the gym from my classroom the other day, and they were all in there shooting. They love it now. They’re eat up with it. They had such a lack of confidence, and I’ve been able to watch these young women grow in confidence on and off the court. That’s been the most satisfying part.”
The next basketball season is over half a year away.
But for once, the Lady Raiders can’t wait.
