At 6 p.m. on Friday, the Lady Marauder basketball team will took on the Plano Wildcats at Marcus. According to the assistant varsity coach, Emily Wallace, Plano is a physically tough team. The  Lady Marauders are second in District 8-5A.

“We’ve got a very smart team and girls who play the game a lot,” Wallace said. “All it takes for us is being efficient and running our offense and defense, and just battling every possession.”

Although fan support is very important to the girls, Junior Jenna Davis describes the team’s cheering section as “population zero”. Much of the crowd, which grows as the game goes on, consist of those wanting to get their seats for the boys game, Davis said. Still, the team is appreciative of the boys’.

“The boys have been supportive of our program all year long,” Wallace said. “We have nothing but love for the boys’ team.”

Wallace says that parents are consistent patrons at the games, along with aspiring middle school girl basketball players and loyal friends of players. The crowd grows as the game enters the second half and the boys get ready to play.

The team motto is “Self second, Love first”. Wallace said she sees a lot of enthusiasm, support, and love going into the girls’ game play and teamwork. All team members participate in Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

“If we play our best basketball, we can go a lot further than people would expect us to go,” Wallace said. “We hope that people will come and see how much these girls love each other and love playing the game. It’s really cool to watch.”