2000 points, “Smile like Tyler” and a 1-0 mentality

On Feb. 17, senior night, Ennis senior Marisa Snider scored her 2000th point as a Mustang and shed the weight and expectations of a heroic personal achievement and turned her and her team’s focus towards the post season. 

“It was amazing how much the team celebrated one teammate's accolade," said Mustangs’ head coach Mike Speck. “There were signs made, confetti, and many celebrations amongst the team. To be honest, as a coach, it is a weight that I have seen lifted off of Snider's shoulders. She knew that milestone was close and hitting it is a relief.”

Snider shared her big night with one of the team’s primary inspirations this season, the memory of their classmate Tyler Simmons whose life and legacy were honored at Senior night with what would have been his graduating class had his life not tragically ended in 2023. 

“Tyler Simmons is one of the big things that we are playing for this year,” said Speck. “The girls have ‘Smile Like Tyler’ written on the back of their warmups and it is a frequent reminder to: MAKE THE MOST OF EVERY MOMENT!”

With their standout guard’s milestone in the books and their inspirational tank full, the Mustangs have turned their focus full force towards the District 5B Tournament that will be held this week at Manhattan Christian Events Center on Feb. 25-28. 

“The team mindset is ‘1 and 0,’” explained Speck. “We can only focus on what is right in front of us. We aren't talking about divisionals, state, etc.  We are talking about the practice TODAY or the game TODAY!”

“We will continue to prepare in Mustang fashion. We will sure up some offensive and defensive schemes, but continue to build the team culture.  We have made some changes and saved some things for the post season, but for the most part, we are going to bring pressure and be a well oiled machine on defense.”

The team earned a first round bye by finishing at the top of the regular season standings. Their first game is on Friday at 1:45 p.m. against the winner of the Whitehall vs Townsend match up. While Snider is the undisputed leader of the team, Speck is quick to point out the hard work that other players have done to ready their game to make a big contribution in the post season. 

“Reese Dickinson has improved by leaps and bounds,” said Speck. “She is so coachable. She has made it a statement that she is going to rebound and crash the boards to get a second/third chance.”

“Brooke Hoyer is another returning starter. She is a big player in the paint that also has a beautiful outside shot. She is a huge part of our system that defends the best or second best players of the opponent’s team.”

Speck looks to an infrequently mentioned skill when he talks about the overall growth of his team this season. 

“I have seen the most growth this year in the area of responding,” he said. “The girls have lost a couple of games this year and responded so well. We have gotten better, learned from our wins and losses, and made the best of most situations.”

While staying focused on the “1 and 0” mentality, coach Speck did take a moment to comment on the season split with Jefferson that represented each team’s only conference loss of the season. 

“The season split was interesting,” said Speck. “We match up with them pretty well. They are a very defensive oriented team so possessions are very valuable.”

If both teams advance, there could be a third match between the two teams in the district tournament finals. 

“The keys to facing them at districts is to find shooters and limit their transition buckets. We are fast and tall so transition buckets are our friend on the offensive side,” he explained. 

The finals of the District 5B tournament will be played Saturday Feb. 28 at 7 p.m. at the Manhattan Christian Event Center.