Lady Wildcats leader on, off the court

The Abbeville Lady Wildcats season may not being going as well as they would have hoped, but they do have one bright spot, Arrayia Starlard.

“She (Arrayia Starlard) plays really hard every night and in practice,” Head Coach Dean Dronet said. “Every day she brings good effort, and is one of our team leaders. She has a good tough desire to win.

“Along with that, she has a motor that doesn’t seem to stop, and because of that she hardly ever comes out of the games because she just seems to be able to go and go. She is a very pleasant player to coach and has a
really good attitude.”

Starlard love of basketball started at a young age.

“I chose to play basketball because I just love the game so much,” Starlard said. “Both my parents played basketball when they were in high school. It’s because of them I love the game.”

Starlard said she has been playing the game of basketball since she was seven or eight years old.

All that work, all the way from biddy ball to high school has paid off because now she is one of the leaders of the Abbeville Lady Wildcats basketball team.

As the starting point guard, “she is the starting quarterback of the offense,” according to her head coach.

Starlard is also one of the teams leading scorers and leads the team in assists.

“I just try to play my best every game,” Starlard said. “I try to make sure that I get my teammates involved because basketball is a team sport, and if we play as a team we have a better chance of winning.”

Starlard has positioned herself as someone the team can rely on when needed.

“We kind of lean on her come crunch time,” Dronet said. “When we need a big play on the offensive or defensive side of the ball we look to Arrayia.”

If you want to see Starlard and the rest of her team in action, they will be hosting North Central this Friday night.

Andy Bullard
Sports Editor