High school girls basketball: Bingham easily wins against Darts

SOUTH JORDAN — The faces running the plays might be new, but the Bingham Miners' system remains the same.

That system worked well Wednesday night as the Miners defeated visiting Davis 62-30, thanks to their trademark press and relentless defense.

Despite using the same system, which utilizes between 12 and 15 girls each game and subs them in en masse and liberally, the Miners still have the struggles of a young team.

Wednesday's effort was considerably better than their first outing last week.

"Much better than last game," said Bingham assistant Charron Mason after the Miners defeated Davis 62-30. "We made some improvements, but we still have a long way to go."

The Miners' press was stifling, and what the team lacks in age or experience, it definitely makes up for in speed.

The Miners started off strong and only got better against a young Davis team that is also still trying to figure out its identity.

Bingham was led by Chalese Fanhauser, who scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds. Teammate Meghan Herrick also scored 10 points and earned three assists. Point guard Dezz Ramos scored six points and had four assists, while Rachel Gines finished with seven points and five rebounds. Nicole Newbold also added to the balanced effort with nine points, five rebounds, two blocks and two steals.

Mason said a young team has both pros and cons.

"It's a little of everything," she said with a smile. "It's definitely still the pre-season. … It's fun to get the young kids involved, but it's always challenging when you have to teach them the program, teach them the plays, what to wear on game days and then on top of that the fundamentals."

Davis was led by Metsy McCausland, who scored seven points. Mckenzie MacKay and Rachael Meldurn each contributed six points in the loss.

"This is just our second game," said Darts head coach Amy Wright. "We've made strides. We like to play good programs. It's a good measuring stick for us. You're always measured by your competition."

The Darts graduated seven seniors last year and have only a couple of players with varsity experience.

"We're still looking for positions," she said. "We start region play next week and we'll probably still be looking for positions."

The fact that some players have varsity experience isn't really an issue for this year's squad.

"They don't have anyone around them with experience," Wright said. "They have to learn and teach and help these other kids along."

She said they are still waiting for this year's leaders to emerge.

"Effort is when you go out and play hard," she said, quoting one of her assistants. "Dedication is when you give your heart and soul, too. We need a couple kids to bring more dedication to the program."

e-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com