One year ago, the Lady Raiders made their first playoff appearance in 21 years. Today they’re ranked 12th in the state. “I’m looking forward to see how this team gels and comes together,” Ghazal said. “They have worked extremely hard in the off season, and we are excited to see how that pays off.”
The Lady Raiders say their goals include making playoffs, winning district and winning playoff games.
“This team is very talented, so the sky’s the limit,” Ghazal said. “I don’t want to tie us down or for us to become satisfied after accomplishing just one of our goals. Last year’s team did a great job of going above and beyond expectations.”
Ghazal is happy about the team’s strength.
“We are so deep,”Ghazal said. “We have a lot of excellent players. Taliyah Brooks and Jennifer Sissel will get a lot of attention and rightfully so. They work really hard and are very talented.”
Ghazal had been at small town schools his entire life before moving to Rider last year.
“I loved the community aspect of those schools,” Ghazal said. “I thought Rider would be much more fragmented, but it has been the complete opposite. We have an extremely close coaching staff and faculty that really support one another and their student athletes. One Family, One Team is not just a slogan!”
Already this year, the team became the first Lady Raider basketball team since 1989 to win first place in the Fantasy of Lights tournament held over Thanksgiving break.