This year, the Lady Raiders have a new head basketball coach, Brooke Walthall, leading them into battle on the hardwood. Walthall graduated from Canyon High School and previously coached at Midlothian High School. She played college ball at Texas Tech and has been preparing the Lady Raiders for this season since she arrived at the end of last year.

“I chose to come to Randall because it is a great school,” Walthall said. “Everyone here has a lot of pride in the school and wants it to be successful. I was at a 5A school. It was a great place, but Panhandle people are a little different and I am glad to be back.”

The new season is just around the corner, with the first varsity tournament Nov. 8-10 in Frisco, and the first game on Nov. 13.

“I am very excited about this season,” Walthall said. “Our kids have worked very hard over the summer and they are already putting extra work in during preseason.”

During the summer, the players attended workouts that consisted of running, weight lifting, and building their overall basketball skills, and some played on a club team to stay in shape and keep improving their game.

“(This year) is harder, but a lot more fun,” senior Arian Parr said. “We are having to work hard but it feels so good to know we are improving so much. We are so much more of a team. (Walthall) is a very encouraging woman and I love having that as a player.”

With the coaching change, Parr said techniques, workouts and attitude and the way the players treat each other have changed as well.

“It’s a new method of coaching but definitely what we have been needing,” junior Addy Oneal said. “She has such high expectations and pushes us to work hard. She pushes us to be a stronger team and work harder. We’ve always worked hard, we have just never had the mentality to push ourselves and be better.”