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Idaho Falls High School
School Info
Conference: 5A District 5-6 Conference
Classification: 5A
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Head Coach: Dallan Parker
Years as Head Coach: 1st Season
Previous Experience: Head Coach at Blackfoot – 1 season
Assistant Coach at Pocatello – 3 seasons
Record Last Year: 7-15
Assistant Coaches:
Chelsie Boyle
Norm Kane
Garry Buell
Returning Players:
Maddie Wright, Post, Senior
Madison Johnson, Guard, Senior
Sara Andreason, Guard, Senior
Alex Wilkinson, Guard, Senior
Hadley Hersh, Guard, Senior
Kaydre Thompson, Guard/Post, Senior
Mariah LaPray, Post, Senior
Maya Taylor, Post, Junior
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Team Preview
Written by: Matt Harris (@IdahoSportsMatt)
It’s a fresh face for a new year for the Idaho Falls Lady Tigers.
Dallan Parker takes over as head of the girls basketball program after spending one year at Blackfoot High School. And the cupboard is not bare.
Parker inherits seven seniors and a standout junior to begin his inaugural campaign on the bench for Idaho Falls. He hopes that he can mold this group into contenders.
“I’m most excited about our senior leadership this year,” Parker said. “We are lucky to have seven seniors who all have some varsity experience. I am excited to see how we compete this year.”
Compete is the key word. The 5A District 5-6 Conference is a tough league from top to bottom.
“The conference is extremely competitive,” said Parker. “There are going to be many close games. We need to be tough both mentally and physically. That may be the ‘X-Factor’ to our season.”
Offensively, look for the Lady Tigers to pound the ball inside. Idaho Falls returns senior posts Maddie Wright and Mariah LaPray, along with junior Maya Taylor, a standout athlete and highly recruited volleyball player.
But just because Idaho Falls wants to use their size to their advantage doesn’t mean that they won’t try to run on teams either.
“Our general focus is to push the ball as well,” Parker said. “We are going to look to run the floor if at all possible.”
Those fastbreaks will be led by a combination of senior guards, including Madison Johnson, Sara Andreason, Alex Wilkinson, Hadley Hersh, and Kaydre Thompson.
Parker saw improved ball movement from the Tigers last year while he was at Blackfoot. He hopes that continues this year.
“We want to just continue to progress and do the little things like moving the ball,” he said.
Defensively, Parker feels that his team’s makeup give them a great advantage.
“Our team has quite a bit of length,” he said. “We are going to focus on playing good, fundamental defense.
Parker added that he hopes to employ for man-to-man sets on defense this year compared to last.
“Hopefully we will be able to adjust away from the zone more to man,” he said.
If there is one thing the fans should know about this year’s Lady Tigers squad, it’s that Parker’s team will be ready each and every night.
“We are going to play hard,” he said. “I expect the team to be hardworking and energetic.”
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