HILLARY SMITH: Lighthouse's season of progress comes to an end

After Lighthouse Academy lost its first game of the season 56-2, you'd expect every inch of the balloon on a first-year girls basketball program to deflate.

Coach Katie Kirley saw something completely different.

Even without the promise of a postseason anywhere on the horizon, Kirley's team -- her entire team -- walked back into the gym on Nov. 16 to try again.

"I think my huge takeaway from this season is the passion and grit that my girls have," Kirley said as the final weekend of Lighthouse basketball wound down. "They take the poundings on the court and they'll be back in the gym the next day with that same willingness to learn. That's what I'll see when I reflect on this season."

As the IHSAA girls basketball playoffs begin this week, Lighthouse is in its mandatory waiting period before it can join in the festivities.

The Lions play very few home games, and when they do, their 'home' is the elementary school gym. They practice at a Salvation Army gym in Gary and three days a week they share that court with the boys team, so they'll practice on half the court.

As her team finishes its one-win season, Kirley is already talking about and hoping for a productive offseason.

"I think we finally have the framework for our team, now it's about the summer. True players are made in the offseason," she said. "What I'm trying to figure out now is how to get them the same kinds of opportunities that other kids get in the offseason. I don't want them to miss out on what other players have."

When the Lions won their first game this season, the team was  playing the early half of a girls-boys double-header. The boys team was there to cheer them on, as were their parents and supporters. 

The team was bummed, Kirley said, that the win came at the start of a three-day weekend, so there was no school on the Monday after the victory against South Bend Career Academy.

"They wanted to have that buzz, they wanted to be able to talk to everyone about it," Kirley said. "This year has shown the high level of character this team has. Other schools might have lost a lot of people after some of the games we've played. Maybe not the first one, but after two or three games, you'd lose people. That hasn't happened with us, and that shows the strong women I have on this team."

Lighthouse is part of a charter system of 19 schools across five states that has created what the system calls an "arts-infused" college prep atmosphere. By next year, the school will graduate its first senior class and Kirley will have her first seniors on her team.

"Every one of these girls come in with a lot of heart and desire," she said. "I look at them and what we had at the start of the year,  and we really didn't have the best defense -- there were a lot of fouls, a lot of our games were 2 1/2 hours long -- but that progress comes with time. And every time, we're getting better."

This column solely represents the writer's opinion. Reach her at hillary.smith@nwi.com.