A team-focused mentality

COULEE CITY — After a 2-3 start with a roster chocked full of underclassmen, the Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warrior boys basketball team has rallied and grown together on the court throughout the regular season. “Being really young and just starting, that made it a big challenge,” ACH Head Coach Graham Grindy said. “We had some lopsided losses there (at the beginning of the season), but they were still good learning experiences.” Those losses came against 2B schools, on the road against Lind-Ritzville and Lake Roosevelt. After the 2-3 start, ACH went on a six-game winning streak before later moving to 12-6 on the year. “The slow start was from losing, and getting that in our head and being pissed off a little bit – wanting to win really encouraged us; it lit a fire under us,” ACH sophomore Carter Pitts said. “That helped us a lot.” Pitts is one of the Warriors with veteran experience, having come off the bench for last year’s state runner-up Warrior squad.