LIMESTONE COUNTY TOURNAMENT PREVIEW: Rogers leads young East team into tourney

Published 6:30 am Saturday, January 21, 2017

She might not be in high school yet, but that hasn’t stopped Jirah Rogers from leading East Limestone’s girls basketball team in scoring and rebounding this season.

The eighth-grader is having a breakout year and is a big reason the Lady Indians are undefeated in area play entering the final two weeks of regular season basketball. Through 19 games, Rogers leads the team with 15.6 points and 8.2 rebounds per game.

“Last year was a lot of pressure. We weren’t that good, but we were hanging in there,” said Rogers. “This year, we’ve improved and are doing good.”

A year after suffering a losing season and failing to reach the postseason, East Limestone is poised to host the area tournament and has a chance to get to the Northwest Regional Tournament. What’s most impressive — they are doing it with the youngest team in the county.

“It was different last year. Our seniors were really good leaders and we were all close,” said Rogers. “Now, we don’t have any seniors. So, I’m going to have to step up and I think I’m up to the task.”

The team is so young that more than half the varsity roster consists of seventh- and eighth-graders. East Limestone has no seniors, two juniors, one sophomore three eighth-graders and a seventh-grader. Despite their youth, the team has set big goals.

“We want to host (the area tournament) and we’re trying to win it,” said Rogers. “I’m excited about hosting the county tournament this year.”

East will host the county tournament for the first time since 2012 and enter as the No. 3 seed. They will play Elkmont at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in the quarterfinals. The winner will play West Limestone in the semifinals Friday.

If East does advance to to play West, Rogers will face off against another one of the best young players in the county in Wildcats seventh-grader Caroline Bachus. Rogers and Bachus both play for Alabama Southern Stars in AAU.

“They’ve been waiting on us,” said Rogers. “It’s hard going against her. She is about four inches taller than me, so I just have to take it to her. It’s fun playing against players like her. It makes me a better player.”