TALLAHASSEE, Fl. (WTXL) - The Rickards girls basketball program is one of the most successful in the Big Bend, but a State title has always eluded them. Depending on who you ask, fate could be on their side this year.
"We went 0-2 very beginning," said senior LaNiyah Lee of the Raiders start this season. "Coach Davis said she'd never done that. She said she's never been to State. That's how I think about it."
This group is experienced, and with Lee back after that ACL tear, their potential is sky high.
"This group has been playing together for a while," said head coach Chariya Davis. "Just getting our chemistry back with Niyah back in the line-up, once we get on that same page, we'll be okay."
"Basketball is what brought me back, what made me want to keep grinding to come back to the court, getting healthy and what not.," added Lee. "I hope everything lines up and works out."
Her grind to get back on the court matches up to that grind in the classroom. Lee has a 4.9 GPA in Rickards IB program.
"I've always had the highest GPA on the team so I offer tutoring," she said. "If I've had the class already, I'm definitely giving my materials down. It's never a big deal for me."
"She's always worked hard with her academics and that's always been first," said coach Davis. "Sometimes I have to tell her that basketball is basketball and IB is IB. Sometimes she can bring IB to basketball, and I say hey just simplify it and we've got something."
Studied up in the books, and sitting out last year made her study the game. Now, she's ready to take this team to the next level.
"We don't even think about it as okay State. We think about it as okay, this is a District game, let's get the next District game," said Lee. "We don't have to worry about the games in between, let's get the District games done so when we get on the road, we'll be fine."
They'll be fine, because hey, fate could be on the Raiders side.
