It seems like an ideal fit. New Perryville girls basketball coach Mike Blizzard says he "loves rebuilding" and the Panthers are in the middle of a rebuilding project. Last year, a young Panthers squad showed some positive signs under coach Gina Pucci. Pucci decided to turn the reins over to her friend, Blizzard, who is entering his 17th season as a basketball coach. Blizzard joking refers to himself as similar to SMU's Larry Brown, the famously itinerant but successful basketball coach. Blizzard has coached at Havre de Grace, Harford Community College, Harford Tech, Aberdeen, and most recently John Carroll. He left the John Carroll position to run for elected office as a state delegate, a race he narrowly lost. Blizzard, who works in admissions at Harford Community College, is somewhat familiar with the Panthers' roster, having witnessed several games last season. Perryville will be without last year's starting point guard Krystle Schweers, who suffered a torn ACL. Jaleea Woods, a transfer from Florida, will take over the point guard duties. Kayla Losoya, who saw time on varsity last season, is slated to be the starting two guard. "She has worked hard in the offseason," said Blizzard. The Panthers will rely on scoring from returning small forward starter Jules Jones. Forwards Jillian Miller and Teri Wennersten will be big factors inside. They both take advantage of heart and hustle to score and rebound and Blizzard will help them improve their post play. Lydia Hill, who did not play last season, is slated to provide a boost of the bench. "She has the heart and the instinct of an athlete," Blizzard says. Forward Sierra Johnson will also contribute in a reserve role. Blizzard is promising a lot of excitement. "We'll score a lot because we're going to run," said Blizzard, who is willing to put up with 18-20 turnovers in order to play an up tempo game. He plans for the Panthers to peak at the end of the season. "We might get out of the gate slow," he said. "But I could care less about winning in December. I want to be winning in February. We're going to be fun to watch. We're going to make a lot of mistakes at first but we will be fun to watch in February." Comments are closed.
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