FLOWERY BRANCH — Nothing helps building a winning program like winning. And in her first three seasons at Flowery Branch, former Lady Falcon great and coach Courtney Newton-Gonzalez has done nothing but.
Newton-Gonzalez guided the Lady Falcons to 77 wins in her first three seasons, culminating with the program’s first-ever state championship game appearance last season. But the Lady Falcons also graduated the dynamic duo of Taniyah Worth (Alabama) and Lexi Sengkhemmee (Emmanuel College) and Newton-Gonzalez and the Lady Falcons face the prospect of their first season without the pair to lean on.
Not to worry, says Newton-Gonzalez. A four-pack of experienced seniors -- guards Caroline Wysocki, Ashley Scott, Ashley Woodroffe, and 6-foot-3 post Ashlee Locke -- still will roam the floor for Flowery Branch as they embark on how to continue to build when there is only one goal unfulfilled.
“This is my first senior class so that is exciting. It means a lot to me to see how much they have changed as people and players It’s been a fun group to be around,” Newton-Gonzalez said.
“But these four girls have been a part of, and helped build, the winning tradition that we wanted to establish. These girls coming back know they need to be leaders and they have really stepped up so far.”
But the Lady Falcons will be more than just the four seniors. A trio of sophomores in guards Morgan Aguilar and Rylee Rothschild, along with 6-2 post Abby Whitaker, will give Newton-Gonzalez a young and talented group to augment her seniors.
“They’ve been in the system a few years and know what to expect but we will need some big minutes from them for sure,” Newton-Gonzalez said. “They got to practice against Taniyah and Lexi and the other girls the last couple of years so we’ve been able to develop them and we think they’ll be a solid group moving forward.”
Flowery Branch played in the uber-tough Region 8-5A, which housed perennial state contender Buford, which knocked off the Lady Falcons 60-49 in last year’s Class 5A title game. They move down to Class 4A, and specifically Region 7-4A, in 2018-19 but the focus will not change, Newton-Gonzalez stated.
“Our goal every year is to compete for the state title,” she said. “We came just a bit short last year so there was the usual disappointment in that. But we feel we have a group this year that can compete if it continues to get better.
“In the region we know Marist is always good and you have Chestatee and West Hall, and White County is improved, plus the new school Denmark that no one knows much about so we expect another challenging season.”
To help the maturation process, as well as the athletic one, Newton-Gonzalez is taking the Lady Falcons to the prestigious Nike Tournament of Champions in Phoenix, Ariz., Dec. 18-23 to go against some of the best teams in the nation.
“We’re really looking forward to that,” she said. “It’s going to be a lot of fun for the team but it also will let them compete against some the nation’s best teams and see how the measure up. Playing against great teams like that, and Buford the last few years, is what helps you get better and progress.”
The Lady Falcons open their season on Nov. 15 against Dawson County in Dawsonville. The Lady Tigers, like the Lady Falcons, are expecting big things this season in Class 3A and it should be a tremendous opening test for both squads.
“We’re looking forward to opening against them,” Newton-Gonzalez said. “They should have one of the better teams in the area and to be open with against a quality team like that will be fun and give us an idea of where we are.
“We’re just excited as a program to get this season started and try tomake another run to the state title game. And hopefully have a different outcome this time.”
