Lake Norman High’s girls basketball team is unbeaten and heading to its first state championship game to play Panther Creek. Head coach McKenzie Graham discussed the big game, and big season, on Talking Preps

By Langston Wertz Jr. / The Charlotte Observer

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I have the pleasure of talking to the Coach from the Lake Norman Wildcats Coach Mackenzie how are you this morning I'm great I'm great I'm great how are You I'm good I'm good well coach first Off I want to congratulate you guys on a Great season a great Victory and a hard Fall game Saturday my first question for You though is like when with this group When did you know that hey we can do Something really special here oh gosh With players that we have and just the Group we had last year we knew that we Could do some special stuff last year Um you know we had Allie woodkoski we Had Madison Saunders we had some big Pieces then but we also had a group of Five freshmen and we knew that once they Got a little experience under their belt Got some varsity play in time we're able To just develop under our system and What we really try to do uh we they Showed some uh some good things last Year and so really uh I would say this Year when we went over to NC State team Camp in the summer and we played some Incredible competition we played Cardinal Gibbons and we played uh Sarah Strong's AAU team and we were able to Hang with her and Um win a lot of the games that we that We played there and so that's when us as A coaching staff really took a look We're like we have a chance to be really

Really special this year all right so my Follow-up question is that it's like What game was it when you looked at it And you were like we got a chance to run The table here Oh that's a tough one Um probably in our preseason scrimmages When we went over to Providence day and Uh we played Legacy and everybody Leading up to that was talking about how Hey this this Legacy team they're legit Man and so uh I was like oh gosh you Know so we were a little nervous to play Them and and we went in there and we Hung with them the whole time and ended Up winning that game and so I would say That was about the time that we were Like we're good and I think we might be A little bit better than we than we Anticipated being so I would say that Would be the game that was like all Right well we got a chance to do Something really special this year I Love it I love it well you know my big Thing about your team which makes them Interesting to me is I always say that This is a team full of kids that just do Their job I feel like Kirsten is kind of The engine she kind of gets you started On both ends of the floor with the kind Of her energy and her effort and then You know you got Addison siriano who Really just takes the challenge The Garden of other team's best player and

Knocking down open shots and obviously The she hands knocking down shots and Kelsey Ryan as well can you talk about Kind of Eat your your team's mindset as far as That goes like as far as the buy-in I Guess with Kirsten being a senior and The other four I guess we got with three Sophomores and one freshman starting you Know how was that for you as a coach Getting them to buy in to understand you Know what jobs needed to be done for you Guys to be successful this year yeah It's a great problem to have everybody Was like you know tell me about Your starting lineup I was like well I Got one senior not another senior on the Team not a single Junior and then the Rest of them are sophomores and freshmen And so they're like man looking in the Future you guys are going to be you're Gonna be good for a little while and Yeah so that's super exciting but Kirsten's been with us for four years I Mean she she really saw Um us build from the really the ground Up I mean her freshman year we had Lauren Sullivan who's over at Wingate And so I would say Kirsten kind of Learned from her a little bit as far as Expectations but Kirsten I I can't say Enough about her she uh she she does Everything for us and the most important Thing that she does is

Um just be that one that one leader in That senior leadership that we have on Our team she comes in day in day out she Holds people accountable and uh but the The other uh sophomores and freshmen That we have they they have just balled In from the beginning and I think that It's really just the expectation that We've said as a coaching staff is we When we came in we wanted to win a state Championship and that was our goal and Really looking at it then and and having Time to reflect and look at this now Um five years ago we were kind of just Laughing about it we want to get this Program to to this uh place and we won I Think eight games total our first year 11 the next and so back then it was just Like yes it's an expectation that we Want to get to one day and it's kind of A dream but uh but for us to be here we You know it's all about the culture and Just starting something and just holding Your players accountable and holding Them to certain expectations day in and Day out but uh these kids they work hard They uh I've never seen I've never seen A group of girls work like this it's not Even just work in the gym it's Um it's their eating habits it's what They do outside of our practices it's It's just the combination of everything That just makes them so special so they Buy in they understand their roles we

Know Kirsten can take over a game we've Seen that in the playoffs but without Addison syriani on there uh we don't win The game games we don't win the games That we've won and um you know and then The she hands playing the roles that They have for us this year uh Sam being Our Sharpshooter and then Lex just being In there uh our slasher our combo guard Our post presence Um and then you add in Kelsey who is Just She's Not Afraid of Anything and She's a freshman but she plays Way Beyond her years and so they just Continue to push each other at practice Every day but but they know we've had Some tough conversations and some tough Practices where we've really said this Isn't who we are and this isn't what we What we want to be and if we continue to Do stuff like this we're not going to Reach our goals and um so Kirsten really Starts uh those conversations at Practice and things start going Um you know in a way that we don't want It to but it's just a it's an Unbelievable group of girls awesome well Thank you so much coach I really Appreciate that that in-depth answer and I want to tell you congratulations on a Great season and good luck on Saturday Thank you I appreciate it so much

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