The Harrisburg Lady Bulldogs lost two seniors from their 22-7 state sectional team a year ago, but should not miss a beat as they return almost all of their scoring power with the addition of a three-year All-conference and All-District Class 4 senior transfer.

Coach Jaryt Hunziker returns for his second year at Harrisburg and his 22nd season as a head coach, a run that includes a state title while at Boonville. He led the team to a district championship a year ago and expects at least as good a season this year on the shoulders of four seniors who are capable of combining for better than 40 points a night.

Hunziker lost two seniors from last year’s squad, Avelina McKinzie and Macie Ellis. McKinzie averaged 13.2 points a game, bringing the ball down the floor last year. Hunziker said he’s going to miss not only her scoring, but her ability to make great reads and passes. Ellis contributed with solid outside shooting and good ball movement.

Returning this year are seniors Lorelai Hunziker, Poppy Spry, and Jaidyn Stephenson, juniors Isabelle DeMuth, Brette Ackman, Lainey Timbrook, and Gracie Vaughan, and sophomores Carly Ott and Kate Cook.

Hunziker scored 17.8 points a game in her first season as a Lady Bulldog last season.

The roster also gets a boost from a 5’10 transfer, Audrey Arnold, from Fulton. She scored 17.5 points and pulled down 6.5 rebounds with a 37.2 shooting average from the arc as a junior against Class 4 competition last season and brings All-District skills to the Harrisburg lineup this year. Even before stepping on the floor in a Harrisburg uniform, she has already signed on to play at the college level next season at Drury University in Springfield.

Arnold was the focus of every defense Fulton faced last year. “I think she appreciates coming here where you have multiple people who can score,” Coach Hunziker said. “She can score in multiple ways. She can get to the basket. She’s got a great pull-up jump shot. She shoots a high percentage from beyond the arc. Her length on defense, her motor, and her athleticism are going to help us. She’s perfect for the kind of system we like to play.”

Arnold was the starting point when the Bulldogs took the floor for the first time Friday night at Sturgeon. Alongside her this year will be Harrisburg’s top scorer from a year ago, Lorelai Hunziker, who averaged 17.8 points a game, to go along with almost seven rebounds a game and 40 percent 3-point shooting as a junior last season.

“Lorelai has gotten a lot stronger and is one of the best shooters in the area from the arc,” Coach Hunziker said. This season, the plan is to get her inside more, where she can post up off the dribble. “She can beat you in multiple ways.”

“Audrey and Lorelai are going to be that one-two combo,” Coach Hunziker said. And both should reach the 1,000-point career milestone early in the season. Arnold was 55 points shy of the mark, and Hunziker was 66 points away when the team tipped off Friday night in the season opener at Sturgeon.

Harrisburg has plenty of homegrown talent to bolster Hunziker and Arnold, who both transferred in. Senior Poppy Spry will start at forward. Coach Hunziker said she has gotten stronger after dedicating herself in the weight room. “She can finish around the basket, and she’s very unselfish. When defenses collapse, she’ll find the open person. What makes me most proud is her defense. She’s not afraid to get in there and bang around.”

Another senior, Jayden Stephenson, will start for her third straight season as a shooting guard. She turned heads, sinking some key 3-pointers against Westran in the district championship last season. “She’s one of the reasons why we won that district,” Coach Hunziker said, adding that she makes great decisions but almost passes up too many shots when a teammate has a better look. “She’s very unselfish. She’ll grab some rebounds from us, and she plays hard on defense.”

At 5’8, junior Isabelle DeMuth is a starting guard/forward who can score off the dribble and shoot the three as well.

Another junior who will see starting time is Brette Ackman, who sank around 30 shots from 3-point range a year ago. “We’re counting on her to be a shooter. But she can get in there with girls twice her size and grab rebounds and score,” Coach Hunziker said. “Defensively, she’s great at reading offenses.”

Those six will create a mix of starters that will fluctuate throughout the season, depending on opponents.

With a deep roster, Harrisburg will have plenty of players who contribute off the bench. Those include 5’10 junior Gracie Vaughan, 5’8 sophomore Ava Grindstaff, 5’7 sophomore Kate Cook, and 5’4 sophomore Carly Ott, all of whom played junior varsity last season. In addition, 5’5 freshman Lily Overfelt, who had an outstanding season a year ago in middle school, could earn varsity minutes this season.

“They are those role players that every team needs,” said Coach Hunziker.

With Harrisburg’s high-quality returning starters combined with talented underclassmen, the Bulldogs aren’t going to miss a beat returning to their up-tempo offense that averaged around 60 points per game last year and the high-pressure defense that held teams under 48 points.

“We try to be a pressure team on both offense and defense. Offensively, putting pressure on the defense by pushing it,” Coach Hunziker said, focusing on player and ball movement. “We try to move the ball quickly to get people open and get the shots that we want.”

Defensively, the Bulldogs will deploy their zone presses and trap opposing teams all over the court.

The Bulldogs are going to need to pick up where they left off last season, right off the bat. They face a grueling schedule against a slew of larger-classed teams, using the regular season as preparation for the district tournament, and, possibly, state-level competition.

“This year, our schedule is going to be more competitive,” Hunziker said, pointing to games against South Shelby in the Peak Sport & Spine Shootout at Moberly Area Community College on Dec. 29 and Fr. Tolton at the Sophie Cunningham Shootout on Jan. 11.

Before those games, Harrisburg will compete in the historic Glasgow Tournament next week as the No. 2 seed. The Bulldogs defeated Fayette in the third-place game a year ago and will match up with the seventh-seeded Falcons in the first round at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The tournament is stacked with high-caliber teams such as Cairo, New Franklin, Westran, and the home team.

Coach Hunziker contends his team will be one of the best in the daunting Central State 8 Conference, without taking any respect away from Tipton, a perennial powerhouse. The Lady Cardinals dispatched Harrisburg 58-25 in the state sectionals a year ago en route to a third-place finish among all Class 2 teams. “They just reload,” he said. “You almost have to play a perfect game to beat them. Obviously, they’re going to be the favorites. But we’re going to be right there. We’re a good team, but we want to be a great team.”

The Bulldogs will spend much of the season on the road, with only eight home games scheduled, not including their own tournament. Harrisburg has just two home games in the first semester, both against teams in larger classes. First up is Southern Boone on Dec. 12, then area rival Hallsville on Dec. 19. The Bulldogs’ next home game is not until Jan. 13 against Macon.

The Bulldogs will also face Class 1 Higbee during the Harrisburg shootout on Jan. 24. The Tigers return All-State 3-point shooter Lauren Spilman and deploy a similar aggressive style.

Harrisburg stays home to host its own tournament starting on Jan. 26 before heading down the final regular-season stretch of six games over the last two weeks. The Bulldogs wrap up the regular season against New Bloomfield on Feb. 17 at home.