The Mount Greylock Girls Basketball team, led by Coach John Jacobbe, recently began its 2023-2024 season. So far they have played six games; the team won against Monument Mountain and Mount Everett, and lost to Belchertown, and Franklin Tech, Drury and Pope Francis.
The team is currently reworking some of their dynamics after losing a few central players who graduated. According to one of the team captains, senior Jackie Brannan, these players made up a large part of the starting team.
The season is still young, with plenty of time to train and prepare for future games. “We can work on dribbling and shooting. I just want to make sure that these girls have fun and work hard while they play,” Brannan said.
Team captain and senior Phoebe Barnes said that, on the team, “everybody has a moment to shine.” She added that players with “confidence will evolve and I think they’ll continue to shine. But we also have places for everybody else to shine and I feel like that’s what’s important.”
“Honestly, I think the best thing to look for is energy and hustle,” Barnes said. While there are a few exceptional players, including eighth grader Tanley Drake, who suffered an ankle injury in the Monument game, the team largely succeeds by working together as a cohesive unit.
Despite the challenges, Barnes and Brannan agree the team’s future is bright. Brannan noted that, in addition to the players who have joined the team this year, there is also a good pipeline of girls playing 7th-8th grade basketball, who will likely join the team in future years. “In a few years we’ll have a very strong full team. Right now we’re very young,” Brannan said. But, she added, as the team grows older “I think Greylock basketball will have a good team.”
