Kiley Bess has two school scoring records. The rest of them are in jeopardy.
As a sophomore last season, Bess scored 50 points at Sikeston on Jan. 18 to break Mary Kalich's single-game record of 45 points. Bess averaged 22.9 points for 617 points for the season and has 1,075 through two seasons. She is now 600 points shy of the girls school record. She also broke the team record for free throws in a season with 191 free throws while shooting 77.02 percent from the line.
She crossed the 1,000-point mark in 51 games, nine games faster than Poplar Bluff legend Tyler Hansbrough, who holds the school record of 2,464 points.
"She is really doing a lot of other things really well," Poplar Bluff coach John David Pattillo said. "She is passing to everybody well, much better on the boards. We are going to expect her to raise her level as far as rebounding goes because that is something she does naturally."
Bess will be a focal point for many defenses.
"We try to run some stuff that gets her free, but also some stuff that gets us some looks when people try to take her away. Our other girls have to step up when people try to take her away," Pattillo said. "(Bess) spent the offseason making herself stronger and more athletic. So we are excited about that."
With no seniors, the Lady Mules return two starters and another five players who split time in that third starting spot. The Mules' other two starters Shelby Sievers and All-Conference Honorable Mention guard Doni Everts graduated.
"I think we are more focused this year. I think we've got something special this year," Bess said. "I think we just have to want it more, be more aggressive than them."
With a core group coming back for the first of a two-year run as leaders of the team, Pattillo is planning to tweak the defense a little bit to take advantage of their strengths.
"We're trying to do some things different defensively that we haven't done in the past. We've been a matchup team, but we are going to mix in some more man this year," he said. "We played some man last year, and all these girls were taught man-to-man through junior high. It is just something we think we can do a little bit more of, along with our matchup."
Offensively, the Mules have several strong shooters in the backcourt.
"We think we are going to be able to shoot the ball and we think we are going to be able to have an inside presence. Then we've got some girls who can put the ball on the floor and drive it to the basket," Pattillo said. "We've always tried to run and we are always going to try to push the ball and get early offense when we can."
Katie Pattillo returns as the starting point guard after leading the team in assists and 3-pointers made last year.
"We're more zoned into what we should be doing. We're doing everything better and we're a lot stronger this year," she said.
Poplar Bluff has lost to Jackson in the MSHSAA Class 5 District 1 championship two years in a row and the team has its sights clearly set on the Indians and winning the program's first district title since 2011, when the Mules beat Jackson in the final.
"The biggest goal is to win a district championship. That is really the only thing we focus on. Jackson has probably their best team they've had in a long time. We feel we can match up with them more physically than we have in the past," Pattillo said.
Pattillo is hoping for strong contributions from players like Alexis Richardson, Emma Johnson, Hannah Corcimiglia, Abby Turner and Sierra Sievers.
Richardson played mostly JV last year, but Pattillo said she has had a good summer.
Johnson split time as a starter before getting injured.
Corcimiglia also split time as a starter in that same spot and has Pattillo excited about her ability to rebound and be a presence inside.
Sievers started some last year, as well, and will be relied upon in the post.
Sievers and Turner give the Mules a pair of 6-footers in the post, which is something Poplar Bluff hasn't had recently.
"These two match up better with the size we are going to see in a lot of the people we are going to play this year," Pattillo said.
Bass, Corcimiglia and Johnson could all start this season, giving Pattillo the opportunity to set his lineup based upon the opponent. Sophomore Alexis Richardson, after a strong offseason, could be in the mix as well, and KeKe Hardaway is one of the team's better defenders.
"There are eight different girls who could start," Pattillo said. "Hannah fought a knee injury last year and she has had a good preseason. Emma fought a broken nose, split her knee open last year. She just had different injuries throughout the year.
"Alexis has had as much improvement this season as anybody ... KeKe rebounds well. She attacks the basket well. We are looking for her to come in and give us a boost defensively and rebounding."
The five player freshman class of Avery Casey, Tymber Colvin, McKenna Morrow, Morgan Courtney and Serena Davis will comprise the majority of the JV team with Poplar Bluff not having any seniors this season.