On a bulletin board in head coach Jenni Croy’s office in the southeast corner of the Ketcham Community Center there is a Republican-Times newspaper clipping.
“Back-To-Back Region Champs,” it reads.
The clipping is only two and one-half years old, but oxygen is not newsprint’s friend. The faded parchment bears the yellowish color of a much older clipping. The season that followed that second-straight region championship probably made that title feel older than it is, too.
But last year, the North Central Missouri College women’s basketball team rebounded, finishing 21-10 and coming within nine points of capturing the Region 16 championship – falling to St. Louis in the title game.
The returners from last season have hopes high on campus this year as the Lady Pirates will combine their top two players from last season with a promising recruiting class that boasts eight incoming freshmen. At the top of the list, though, are sophomores Sarah Lamp and Kendey Eaton.
The duo burst onto the scene last year as freshmen, immediately changing the perception of the program after a down year in 2015-2016.
“(Eaton and Lamp) fell into the college game very well,” Croy said of her top two scorers last season. “I wasn’t sure, you never know how kids are going to adjust, and I felt like those two just embraced it. They are a huge nucleus for us coming back. They’re our key factors on the floor right now. Now we just have to find three more that can gel with them.”
Eaton, a point guard, scored almost at-will, averaging 19.5 points and 3.6 assists per game. Lamp gave North Central the inside presence that was once a staple of the program, but had gone missing. She averaged 16.8 points and 11.5 rebounds per game last season.
“Kendey found a way to score for us,” Croy said. “She was able to shoot a high percentage from the outside, she got to the rim and continued to get stronger physically in the weight room, which was huge for her. She is one of the strongest kids that we have.
“Sarah, her inside game just blossomed. I felt like she really had to work on how to play against somebody that is bigger than her and, just again, put the work in that she needed to be successful on the floor.”
Lamp battled injuries last season and missed some time for the Lady Pirates. Coming into this season, however, the sophomore forward feels the injury bug is behind her and is ready to get out on the floor.
“I’m feeling pretty great,” Lamp said. “We did a lot of rehab and a lot of physical therapy on all of those injuries and stuff. Hopefully, this year will be injury free.”
Madison Gonseth represents North Central’s only other returnee from last year’s team. The 5-11 center looks to be North Central’s number five player this season, playing in the post alongside Lamp.
Outside of those three, North Central will be made up of a new cast, but a familiar one for basketball fans in the area. Croy spent the offseason locking down all the local talent she could get her hands on. Trenton’s Whitley Richman, Nicole Kost and Lindsay Wyatt of Mercer, Gilman City’s Hailey Burrows and Brookfield’s Ashtin Williams will all be joining the ranks of the Pirates this season. While that is certainly a talented group, they all saw almost exclusively Class 1 and 2 opponents during their respective senior years. There will no doubt be a bit of a transition as they begin this phase of their careers at the next level.
“I think the biggest adjustment is the speed and the physicality of the game,” Croy said. “Just adjusting to being so tightly guarded and figuring out how to get yourself open. These are things we work on in practice, too, and they have really done a good job with it. Once in a while they are a little timid, a little shell-shocked with how aggressive it is, but I think that will just come with time as they get used to it.”
Fortunately, if that group needs to find a blueprint for going from successful small school basketball players to successful college players they need look no further than their teammate – Kendey Eaton. Eaton hailed from Mound City, where she won a Class 1 state championship before coming to North Central.
“The competition is definitely a lot faster, bigger, all of the above,” Eaton said of the transition. “It was a little bit like playing AAU ball, so that helped me. It definitely took a few games to get used to it, though.”
Of the freshman group, Maddison Book of St. Joseph-Lafayette might make the biggest impact early on. She has delivered the most consistency among the newcomers to the team and Croy has praised her defense. The Pirates also add another Mound City player with a familiar name – Joeigh Eaton, Kendey’s sister.
Rounding out the roster for the Lady Pirates are freshman Ona Furst Funosas from Spain and first-year sophomores Taylor Works and Samm Jett.
“We want to be that team that peaks at the end of February, first of March,” Croy said. “We have the tools, I think. This is probably the deepest team we have ever had in terms of talent. Once we get it all figured out, that is our goal, to get into that region championship game.”
Croy isn’t the only one aiming high this year, either. The Lady Pirates are on board.
“That’s definitely our goal,” Lamp said. “We’ve got that in the back of our minds, for sure. That is where we want to be and that is our goal – to get that title this year.”

2017-2018 NCMC Women’s Schedule
11/1 – KANSAS CITY KANSAS 5:30 PM
11/3 – vs. Fort Scott # 7:30 PM
11/4 – vs. Johnson County # 2:00 PM
11/8 – PARK JV 5:30 PM
11/10 – CENTRAL METHODIST JV 6:00 PM
11/14 – @ University of St. Mary JV 7:00 PM
11/18 – vs. Bryant & Stratton # 1:00 PM
11/19 – vs. John Wood # 1:00 PM
11/21 – @ Southwestern (IA) 5:30 PM
11/29 – SOUTHWESTERN (IA) 5:30 PM
12/6 – @ Kansas City Kansas 5:30 PM
12/9 – WILLIAM PENN JV 2:00 PM
12/12 – @ Indian River State (FL) 1:00 PM
12/13 – @ Miami Dade College 4:30 PM
1/7 – UNIVERSITY OF ST. MARY JV 2:00 PM
1/10 – @ Southeast (NE) 5:00 PM 1/13 – ST. LOUIS* 2:00 PM
1/18 – MISSOURI VALLEY JV 5:30 PM
1/22 – @ Missouri Valley College JV 5:30 PM
1/24 – PENN VALLEY* 5:00 PM
1/27 – @ North Arkansas 12:00 PM 2/1 – GRACELAND JV 5:30 PM
2/3 – @ St. Louis* 1:00 PM
2/5 – COTTEY COLLEGE* 6:00 PM
2/6 – @ Central Methodist JV 7:00 PM
2/10 – @ Penn Valley* 2:00 PM
2/14 – @ Cottey College* 6:00 PM
2/17 – SOUTHEAST (NE) 2:00 PM
2/20 – GRACELAND JV 5:30 PM
2/24 – NORTH ARKANSAS 12:00 PM
(Home Games In Bold All Caps)
* – Region XVI Game
# – Shootout
11/3-4 Johnson County Shootout
11/18-19 John Wood Classic