There are plenty of new faces on the Odessa High girls basketball team.
Only three players from last year’s season-opening roster are still on the Lady Bronchos and only one of them played consistently throughout all of last year.
Aneth Jimenez was hampered by a leg injury and Arianna Aguilar saw action off the bench in several games.
However, junior Skylar Herrera is beginning her third season on the varsity squad and is ready to be one of Odessa High’s leaders.
“It feels really good,” Herrera said about leading the Lady Bronchos. “I take it seriously and I come into practice and I try to do my best. I try to be a great example.”
Herrera specifically mentioned she’s trying to be a leader in practice by never taking a day off and finishing every drill to the best of her ability.
The graduation of several seniors leaves a huge void for Herrera and her teammates to fill and Odessa High head coach Olivia Pyburn knows that her junior post can be the focal point of the team.
 “I expect hard work and leadership from every single one of them,” Pyburn said. “(Herrera) is the one who’s most seasoned out there. She kind of knows what to bring every night.
“She also looks for her teammates to kind of continue this program. Skylar is going to be a big key for us.”
Although the team’s seniors and juniors represent the majority for Odessa High, five freshman and sophomores are also on the team. That means they’re not only new to varsity, but new to the high school level of play as a whole.
“We do have quite a few new people so were kind of rebuilding the chemistry,” Herrera said. “It’s working very good. We have some younger people but they’re working very hard. I we’re going to do good.”
Herrera has consistently started for Odessa High over the past two years and she’ll play a big part in this season as well.
Unlike previous years however, Herrera won’t see players like Ruthie Fox or Kai’Naja Walton beside her, who have both gone on to play at Lone Star Conference schools. She’ll be tasked with a few other players to be the driving force behind each Lady Broncho victory.
“We’re capable of a lot,” Herrera said. “We have a lot of young ones, but they’re doing really good and as the season progresses, it’s going to be good. This is a team that’s capable of doing big things.”
