MEADOW BRIDGE — In their bid to upset heavily-favored Saint Joseph Central, members of the Meadow Bridge girls basketball team realize they must present a united front.

And it will help to also embrace and enjoy the experience, they say.

Senior Holly Gunnoe, a four-year starter, says she is “out of my mind excited” that Meadow Bridge is playing in the girls state tournament for the first time since the 2002-03 season. “I’m so proud of the team and myself,” she added.

Gunnoe and her teammates, the tourney’s eighth seed, will face No. 1-seeded Saint Joseph — the defending champs — at 5:30 p.m. Thursday in a quarterfinal matchup at the Charleston Civic Center Coliseum. The winner faces either Charleston Catholic or Pocahontas County  at 7:15 p.m. Friday, and the championship contest is set for 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

Gunnoe says the Wildcats (12-9) need to continue a trend they saw throughout the season.

“We really worked together as a team and family this year,” she said. “I thought coming into the season that (making the state tournament field) was possible. I got discouraged a little when everybody got sick. But we’re all better now.”

“It’s going to be intense. I know they’ve got some size on their side, but we’ve got the determination to beat them.”

Gunnoe says the biggest strength for the Wildcats is that “we’re all friends and we know each other because we all click.”

Fellow senior Cayli Bolen doesn’t feel her team is a Cinderella squad. “We’re exactly where we wanted to be.”

Bolen, like basketball teammate Kristen Redden, was a member of the Meadow Bridge volleyball unit which made the school’s first-ever state tourney trip in that sport this past fall. She felt the volleyballers didn’t take full advantage of their venture to the Charleston arena.

“My biggest thing is not to be content,” she stressed. “In volleyball, we got to states and got content just to be there.

“We’re not done yet.”

Bolen offers some simple advice for adjusting to the expansive Civic Center atmosphere. “To me the best thing you can do is relax.”

Bolen will draw the assignment of guarding Saint Joseph’s Dusti Chapman, a double-digit scorer. “Defensively, we try to shut people down; that’s just what we do,” she said. “Our coaches have given us a good scouting report. I’m so excited. Being a senior, I’m just ready to play.”

According to the third 12th-grader in the starting rotation, guard Chelsea White, the tournament trip is a reward for a solid season.

“I think we’ve had a real good season and we’ve come together as a team,” she said. “I knew we could (make the tourney).

“We’ve played a real tough schedule.”

“I’d like to win Thursday but if not, at least have a good showing and play our hardest,” White added. “I’m not nervous, but I am excited.”

Of the season, Redden, a junior forward who averages 12 points per game, said, “Overall, (the season has) been pretty fun. I enjoyed it, even though we had a deep hole in the beginning, but we finally started clicking along. We started playing together as a team.

“Playing tougher teams helped a lot.”

“I don’t know a lot about (Saint Joseph),” she continued. “We’ve just got to stick together and play as a team. We have to play with a lot of heart. If we do that, I think we can do well.”

Redden says she didn’t envision the Wildcats advancing to Charleston this week, at least when games began in early December.

“I didn’t think we would be going to the tournament,” she said. “As the season went on, I could tell we were getting better.”

Freshman guard Chandra Harrah, the ‘Cats’ leading scorer with about 14.0 points per contest, says teamwork has been a key for Meadow Bridge this winter.

“We all work together well,” she said. “Nobody’s a ball hog.

“We’ll probably have to take it to the basket (to have success).”

As a rookie, Harrah knows she’ll have some jitters Thursday. “I’m going to be really nervous, but once I get out there and start to play the nerves will go away. It’s really awesome that we’re going down there.”

Key reserves for the Wildcats include Sarah Fleshman, Allison Gilkerson and Dee Richmond.

Saint Joseph beat Region 3 representative Fayetteville 91-60 last year en route to the state title.

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