Spiro moves forward with Wright taking charge

Spiro’s girls basketball team gets ready to start its season with Dennis Wright taking the helm as head coach after Kyle House stepped down.

Wright, who was the assistant coach for Spiro’s high-school girls and head coach for the junior-high team last year after coaching Poteau’s girls team for the previous four years, enjoyed the preseason and the effort that his girls put into it.

“It’s been good so far. Last year was nice, just worrying about the junior high,” he said. “They’re working hard and improving. They just have to keep improving.”

Spiro went 3-15 last season, losing both of its postseason games.

Wright described his team as “pretty young” with only two seniors, Madilyn Lovell and Reagan Gist, and three juniors. Still, he said the potential is pretty high.

Gist and junior Kambrie Rogers are the main scorers.

“We won’t have one dominant scorer. It will be evenly distributed,” Wright said.

Sophomore Kailee Martin and junior Lindsey Wortham are expected to be significant scorers.

“Lindsey’s had a pretty good preseason,” Wright said.

Freshman Brynlee Graham will also help as a scorer, in addition to stepping into a significant post role.

“She’s come a long way. She might not look like a freshman, but she is a freshman,” Wright said, expressing that Graham will be tested under the bright lights of competition.

Wright said he is looking for the team to be at its best in February. He said the ideal form of the team will be “pretty free-flowing with the ball moving and [players] taking good shots on offense and, on defense, [players] moving and flying around.”

In NOAA conference play, Wright expects challenges “every time we step on the floor” with Stilwell and Muldrow being strong, Sallisaw being better and Poteau presenting talent.

Spiro opens at home against Panama on Thursday.