The 2023-2024 girls’ basketball season is soon to be under way with their first game of the season on Friday December 8th in Winner.

The girls’ basketball head coach is Mike Koupal. He is in his 16th year as head coach of Wagner’s girls’ basketball team. He is assisted this year by Hunter Hewitt, Tera Koupal, Courtney Mack and Tanner Wince.

This year’s team has three seniors Macy Koupal, Aubrey Medricky and Aniyah Bruguier-Fields. There is one junior on the team, Lydia Yost. Returning sophomores are Rico Fischer, Brooklin Nielson, Steph Atencio and Ashlyn Koupal. The Raiders have seven freshmen joining the team including Mateya Bruguier, Braxton Nedved, Hayden Fischer, Katrina Zephier, Shaelee Turner, Jaquelin Selwyn and Ravyn Medricky.

The Lady Raiders have been busy in their offseason. The team hosted their annual camp May 30th – June 2nd for grades 3rd -12th. The team attended the DWU camp this summer and came away as tournament champions. They also attended the Mt. Marty team camp and USD team camp, taking away three wins at each camp. At the USD team camp, they played Iowa State qualifier, Ankeny Centennial; Iowa defending state champs, Sioux Center; and a team from Monticello, MN.

Last season, the Wagner girls’ basketball team ended their season with a 24-2 record and runner up to Hamlin in the Class A State Tournament. The team graduated Eve Zephier, Shalayne Nagel and Emma Yost, all of whom went on to play college basketball.

Wagner will return three starters from last year. They had a very competitive off-season where the team figured out what they needed both offensively and defensively. The team was told early on that they needed to use the summer and off season to work out some of the growing pains that they will endure this season. According to Coach Koupal, “Every season is like a new puzzle”. Wagner has been very fortunate in the past few years to have the majority of their roster return the following season. This year will be a year of growing pains as some players will need to step in and fill the voids left by the graduating seniors. Wagner’s roster will have the majority of its players made up of underclassmen. The upperclassmen will be relied on heavily to use their leadership to guide and propel the younger players through the long season. The team needs to be playing its best basketball in mid-February into early March.

Macy Koupal is a three-year starting point guard and a fourtime all-conference player. She will be asked to change her role from what it has been the past few years. Lydia Yost is another returning starter and two-time all-conference player that will be asked to stretch her range on the court to help open up the inside. She may be looking at some play as a post, which would be a new position for her. Ashlyn Koupal is a first team all stater and two-time all-conference player that will be getting a lot more attention from opposing teams defensively. Ashlyn does a great job of letting the game come to her and will have to make split second decisions in response as teams focus on her more defensively.

Aubrey Medricky, Aniyah Bruguier, Brooklin Nielson, Rico Fischer, Braxton Nedved, Hayden Fischer, Ravyn Medricky, Katrina Zephier, Mateya Bruguier, Steph Atencio and Shaelee Turner will all need to find their place and role to help build upon what the team started the past offseason at open gyms and summer team camps. All the girls will play a vital role in one way or another in how successful the Wagner team will be this season.

Coach Koupal lists Vermillion, the Hanson Classic, Sacred Hoops Classic, Ethan, Mt. Vernon, Winner and Parkston as just a few of the big games that could be challenging this season. For Mike as the head coach, it is always fun for him to see the players that put in the time in the offseason. People do not get to see the hard work and sacrifice that the girls put in because they are not in the gym with them. He is really looking forward to this season as a great opportunity for the team to showcase Wagner, and what they are all about as a team. “Win or lose there is always something to learn from each game and it is a pleasure to coach young women that are here for their teammates and not themselves”, says Coach Koupal.

Good luck on the upcoming season Lady Raiders!