When the name Meadowdale comes up among area high school girls basketball fans, a few words come to mind: dynasty, institution and dominance.
From 2000 to 2010 the Mavericks captured two state titles and placed in the top six in all but two of the remaining years.
The Mavs routinely competed for league titles when the Wesco league was divided strictly by North and South rather than 4A and 3A (up until 2010-11), including going 15-3 in league play to finish in a three-way tie atop the South with 4A powers Jackson and Edmonds-Woodway in 2009.
But the past two seasons have not turned out the way that Meadowdale fans are accustomed.
The Mavs have twice stumbled in the District 1 playoffs and fallen short of every competitive team’s preseason goal: making the Tacoma Dome and the state tournament.
Meadowdale has recently seen the graduation of athletes who have gone on to play Division I basketball and not reloaded the way it always had in the past, but Margreet Barhoum thinks this season the Mavericks are back.
“I really think we have so much potential to be great,” the senior guard said, “to get our name back at state, and at Tacoma.”
Barhoum is 5-foot-6, lightning quick with the dribble and can score as well as anyone in the Wesco 3A league. Her coach, Troy Parker, says she might be the best scorer in the state. But the Mavericks won’t go very far if they only have one player who can put the ball in the basket.
“People should come out and come to the games because I think it’s the most talented team Meadowdale’s had since I’ve been here,” Barhoum said.
Barhoum and her teammates have spent the off-season working hard, trying to get the taste of last year’s postseason disappointment out of their mouths.
After finishing third in the Wesco 3A standings behind Shorecrest and Lynnwood, who tied atop the league in its inaugural year, Meadowdale dropped a winner-to-state game and then an overtime heartbreaker to Ferndale to end its season in the District 1 playoffs. The Mavs held double-digit leads in both games but let them slip away.
How often do the players think about it?
“Every day,” senior forward Alisa Sagdahl said. “That’s what keeps us pushing it during sprints. Thinking about how we are going to run teams off the court by our fitness.”
A year ago the Mavs had a very small lineup that some teams took advantage of with their size, and this season the roster is not much different. When Parker took over as head coach he realized his team’s deficiency in the one area a coach can’t affect – height – and has adjusted the team’s style accordingly. This year the team’s comfort level with that style could pay big dividends.
“This is the third year where we’ve really put an emphasis on playing fast,” Parker said. “I think our girls are comfortable with it. They know that this is how we like to play.”
Barhoum’s game is especially fit for playing fast and her eyes get big when she describes what she will be able to do with her teammates.
“Honestly, our whole team is athletic,” Barhoum said. “I can’t look at one girl and say she’s not an athlete.”
Barhoum and Parker are excited about the emergence of 6-foot post Ndey Sonko. Sonko played sparingly as a freshman on varsity a year ago and has only been playing serious organized basketball since seventh grade. Her emergence will be a big key to Meadowdale’s success.
“Our two sophomores Ndey Sonko and (guard) Mackenzie Bretz are poised for breakout years,” Parker said. “Mackenzie was as consistent a player as we had all summer.”
With Barhoum and fellow senior captain Katie Rickel – who Parker says improved her outside shot over the summer – leading the way, it’s pretty clear that Meadowdale will be better than last year. The problem for the Mavs may be that the rest of the league will be better as well.
Meadowdale was picked fourth in the league in the preseason coaches poll behind Glacier Peak – last year’s darling of the district tournament and state participant despite finishing tied for fourth in league – Shorecrest and Lynnwood. But none of the top four or even fifth-place Everett had significant losses last year due to graduation and all have added talent from freshmen or JV players from a year ago.
“I think we’ve got a very good team in a very good league and both of those things are exciting,” Parker said. “The fact that we have a good team and we are going to have great competition is the best of all possible worlds.”
Barhoum, who has received recruiting interest from smaller Division I schools as well as several Division II programs but won’t make a decision until after the season, expects the high level of competition will motivate everyone to be better. It is definitely motivating her.
“I want to have an unforgettable senior year,” Barhoum said. “This is it, so I want to give it my all.”
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