The girls basketball team of 1979-80 had a very tough act to follow. The team from the prior season had an outstanding 23-0 regular season record with several seniors. Many thought the team would not be nearly as competitive or successful. They were wrong.

Coach Jim Koehler proved through hard work, determination, and hustle, this team could be successful. They started out the season strong by winning the first 17 games in a row, led in scoring by Junior Marla Sapp, who had 770 points.

This team finished the year with a 21-3 record. Two of the major highlights were winning the Newton tournament and beating highly favored Centralia at home by one point. The Lady Wildcats scored an average of 60 points per game, which is impressive since the 3-point line had not yet been introduced and the girls still played with the heavier and bigger regulation boys’ basketball at that time.

Coach Koehler said “We were not a very big team, so we had to run on other teams”. Other starters beside Sapp were Sheena Young, Tammy Donoho, Maureen Cooney, and Rue Woodruff. Each player contributed in their own way as did all of the other players. Coach Koehler went on to say “This was an easy team to coach and they were very hard working. It was a very enjoyable season”.

Although the regular season was quite successful, the post-season was a bit of a disappointment. The team lost in the conference tournament to Red Hill and lost to Centralia by two points in the regional semi-finals. This team, along with the 1978-79 team, would prove to be two of the best back-to-back basketball teams in SCHS history.