The Central High Lady Chargers are one of the best teams in Georgia. Here’s why

A day after the Lady Charger’s 23rd consecutive win–a commanding, 64-29 victory over region foe Spencer, the team started their practice with recovery.

“Is there any area you want to do?” head coach Tamara Bolston-Williams asked, setting up a yoga video in front of Charger players spread out on colorful yoga mats.

The answer was clear, as everyone said in unison: “Legs!”

This year’s Central girl’s basketball team, ranked No. 1 in the region and second in the state for Division 2A, focuses on defense, pressing teams and moving the ball quickly.

“We stress defense. Very crucial, very heavy, high emphasis on defense. And so when you come to our game, you will see a lot of, a lot of different defenses,” Bolston-Williams said.

Not only do they press, but they also play a lot of half court defenses, zone and man.

Kowacie Reeves, Sr., an assistant coach, said the ability to adjust defenses has been crucial.

“The goal in the identity is defense first,” he said. “We mix it up, just depending on the matchup.”

The other half of the team was busy taking ice baths.

Recovery is important. So is community building. After practice, the team went to Rutland to support their feeder middle school, Miller, in a basketball game.

A strong foundation

Though defense is a big part of Central’s identity on the court, Bolston-Williams said it’s the relationships that are the foundation and why she focuses on creating a bridge between the middle and high school. Each girl on the Central roster is also a part of creating that bridge.

“We do try to create a culture of a sisterhood because they spend so much time together,” Bolston-Williams said. “You want to make sure that they are able to go out and through tough times and fight together and figure out how to win or whatever it is that we need to do on and off the court.”

Central invites Miller athletes to basketball games, and the middle school’s 8th grade team to play Central’s junior varsity, Reeves said.

Most of the Central girls roster grew up playing alongside one another, at Miller, and now at Central.

Reeves, who’s in his eighth year as an assistant coach, said this current roster is unique because of the camaraderie the team has not only on the court, but off the court, as well.

“They just got a tighter bond,” Reeves said. “And I think that helps chemistry on the court.”

Junior Taliah Grier said the Lady Chargers play for each other and have a lot of fun memories together both on and off the court, from building chemistry during tough games at the beginning of the season, to singing songs on bus rides to games.

“We like to share the ball, we’re unselfish,” Grier said. “And we play competitively. So I like that.”

Other people are taking notice. At that Central vs. Spencer game, Tuskegee University head coach Trelanne Powell, a Macon native, was in attendance to watch the Central girls.

Community support

The Central High and Macon community has also been rallying around the Lady Chargers.

They’ve been invited to churches, have been hosted for a brunch, and have packed out gyms for games.

The team has even gone with Fellowship of Christian Athletes to church, Grier said.

Bolston-Williams said Central’s Positive Behavior Intervention Specialist (PBIS coach) who’s also the head cheerleading coach has been influential to the support at games. Central has also hosted themed games to get the student section involved.

“It’s been really rewarding for the girls, to be out and for someone just walk out and just say how proud they are of them,” she said. “That means everything.”

Central has lofty postseason goals, goals the coaching staff have worked toward for a long time.

Three of the four coaches—Bolston-Wiliams, Reeves and Jarfaith Jones have worked together ever since Bolston-Williams took over as head coach five years ago.

“They push us no matter what,” junior Alaya Grane said. “They look out for us, though.”

That consistent core of coaches all brings something unique to the table, Bolston-Williams said. They work together, listen to each other.

“We all analyze film, we all get out and we play against the girls. And that has just worked beautifully for us,” she said.

Lofty goals

They have a long list of accomplishments, but they have a short list of three things they have yet to cross off that list.

“As a head coaching staff, the only thing that we have not yet achieved as a group is a region championship, a Final Four and a state championship,” Bolston-Williams said.

Ranked second in the state all season, this may just be that year for Central. However, as Grane said, their goal is to win, but the postseason is a new season.

“We start at 0-0,” she said.

The lone senior on the team, Kayla Pryor said they have a “4.3 mentality”.

The Macon Coliseum, which hosts the GSHAA State Championships, is 4.3 miles away from Central High.

That’s where they want to be come March.

But, Central recognizes what it will take to get there. It’s what they’ve been preparing for.

Bolston-Williams points out that Central hasn’t always been near the top. They have been those unranked teams that come out and surprise with big upsets.

The coaches hold their team accountable.

“The accountability piece has been really, really, really big with his team, and just ensuring that everyone knows that they are an important piece of the puzzle,” Bolston-Williams said. “And every part of the puzzle is important.

Not only do the coaches hold the team accountable, but so do many of the leaders on the team.

“We can count on Taliah for holding players accountable,” Bolston-Williams said about the reigning Middle Georgia Player of the Year, who’s also involved in numerous different community clubs and organizations outside of basketball. “[She’s] just an incredible person, period.”

Other leaders include Kayla Pryor, the one senior on the team.

“She’s naturally just the floor leader, very positive kid, always wanting to feed into everybody,” Bolson-Williams said, also noting all of the other leadership roles her team takes, like encouraging and cheering others on. “I have a lot of leaders on the team.”

Bolston-Williams and the rest of the Central program have been building for a long time.

“The way that things are going so far, it’s just a true blessing to see the fruits of our labor, a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, a lot of sacrifices, a lot of things lost in the process of building a program up, so we’re very proud of where we are, and whatever is going to come or whatever it’s going to unfold from for everything that we’ve been doing,” she said.