Trailblazers Show Promise in Preseason Scrimmages Ahead of Season Opener

GODFREY, Ill. — With two strong preseason scrimmages under their belt, the Lewis and Clark Community College women's basketball team is showing early signs of growth and chemistry as they prepare to open the 2025–26 season.

Head Coach Isaac Moore said the Trailblazers' preseason matchups against Culver-Stockton and Blackburn College provided valuable opportunities to gauge the team's readiness heading into the regular season.

"I've loved scrimmaging two fantastic programs," Moore said. "The intensity within practice is one thing, but the jump when you have officials and a different system and team cannot be overstated. It also helps players realize they have a new role this year, one they didn't have on the team last year or at the high school level. Lots remains to be proven, but it feels great to finally be back out there."

While the Trailblazers have shown offensive firepower early, Moore said the team's focus has been on improving consistency and toughness on both ends of the floor.

"We've really needed to improve our ability to score consistently on offense and force turnovers in the full court," he said. "Our defensive rebounding got exposed in our scrimmages due to many injuries at the forward and center positions, but we're now able to scheme around that going into some really good competition in Region 11 for opening weekend."

Leadership from the sophomore class has been a bright spot through the preseason. Moore praised the group's maturity and on-court impact, highlighting their growth both academically and athletically.

"Our sophomores have been nothing short of fantastic," Moore said. "La'Tasja Deloney and Abby Kreitner averaged double digits in scoring, Kelcey Jones and Rachel Bagley have been great all over the stat sheets, and freshmen Ava Smith and Annie Mapes had some really good moments as well. It's a fun group, and many more contributions will be made as the year goes on."

The Trailblazers' offensive potential was on full display during the scrimmages, scoring 80 and 63 points against two programs with vastly different playing styles.

"The main positive has been that four-year coaches have taken notice of the development of our sophomores and the program as a whole," Moore said. "We can play fast, score the ball, and compete with some really talented players and programs."

As the regular season approaches, Moore is keeping his team grounded and focused on long-term growth.

"I've repeated it over and over this month: we're 0-0," he said. "We have a ton left to prove and a long way to go. We do not want to be at our best in October. College basketball is a long season, and we have to enjoy the journey and the process every single day. This is a tough group of players, and getting to work with student-athletes that put maximum effort and energy into every day, makes the process a lot of fun."

The Trailblazers open their season on November 1, 2025, against Iowa Central Community College.

 Written by Alexandra Dunn, Athletics Social Media Coordinator