Lady Jackets invited to Queen of the Palms Classic, August 18, 2011

Leesburg head coach Mark Oates and his Leesburg Lady Yellow Jackets have been invited to play in the Queen of the Palms Classic Girls Basketball Tournament August 18, 2011

LEESBURG -  When Lady Jackets Head Coach Mark Oates took over the Leesburg girls basketball program in 2003 he had visions of a hoops dynasty at Leesburg. As a youngster growing up in North Carolina, Oates was a fan of the University of North Carolina and of its coach, Dean Smith. His approach to the game is similar to the one Smith used to build a dynasty with the Tar Heels. 

"My preferred style of play is the same style Dean Smith used," Oates said. "In our system, we don't run a whole lot of set plays on offense. Scoring opportunities come if you are willing to play defense. It is not hard for kids to buy into the philosophy of having to play defense because they can score points."

Leesburg two leading scorers in 2011 Baylie Bridges left and Ashley Perry right


 

He has accomplished that in his eight seasons at Leesburg leading the Lady Jackets to 3 State Final Four appearances in 5 years. His Lady Jackets are favored to return to Final Four for 6th time in programs storied history in 2012. Oates squad is loaded once again and he returns his top two scorers PG Baylie Bridges and SF Ashley Perry.

The rewards for building such program are recogition on a national level. The type of program that Oates has built has led his Lady Jackets to being invited to some of the most prestegious tournaments in the nation.

Joharra Russell will be asked to play a bigger role in the Lady Jackets offense with the departures of  last years top two rebounders Jaleesa Blue Florida A&M signee and Ashley Lanier Saint Petersburg College signee.

Oates Lady Jackets have been invited to the 64 team Queen of the Palms Classic, set for Dec. 28-30 in Fort Myers, Florida.  The 64-team field has seven Central Florida girls basketball teams Timber Creek, Evans, Leesburg, Orlando University, Olympia, Lake Mary and Boone. The teams are divided into eight eight-team divisions. Last year, Olympia (platinum) and Timber Creek (gold) won their respective divisions.

The 64-team tournament will feature potentially four teams ranked nationally and a number of players who are slated to play at the Division I level in college.


The complete brackets and schedule for the classic have yet to be announced. 


Here is a short list of some of the teams that will participating:
Haines City, Port Charlotte, Sarasota Riverview, Sebastian River, St. Petersburg, Orlando Timber Creek, Viera, Gainesville Buchholz, Fort Myers Dunbar, Tallahassee Florida High, Fort Pierce Central, Naples Gulf Coast, Sarasota, Riviera Beach Suncoast, Ocala West Port, Golden Gate, Jacksonville-Bolles, Hialeah, Lehigh, Palm Beach Central, 
Palm Harbor-UniversitySeffner Christian, Leto-Steinbrenner, Palmetto Ridge, Orlando-Boone, Cape Coral, Lake Mary, Tallhassee-Lincoln, Riverview-Spoto, Vero Beach

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Gerald Lacey
Staff Writer
Carver Heights Quarterback Club
geraldlacey@leesburgyellowjacketsfootball.com

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