Joe’s Take: Stewart sisters’ act helping out young Spartans

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>So, two Stewart sisters are better than one for Greenbrier East?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Apparently.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"left","id":504230,"width":164,"height":245,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignleft size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/09/19-Kennedy-Stewart-scaled.jpg?w=683" alt="" class="wp-image-504230" width="164" height="245" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='496348' first='Kennedy' last='Stewart']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cadence and Kennedy continue making their presence felt in the spotlight. Each and every night. Without a doubt - sometimes it's scoring points, sometimes it's assisting teammates, and sometimes it's the unexpected, but it is always something.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>They're playing within themselves and letting the games come to them. Both of them refuse to believe this year marks a rebuild for the Spartans. If you are jumping on the Spartan bandwagon, you might want to do it now. They certainly are leading the charge in a positive fashion.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Cadence has added two components to her game that I have been trying to pull out of her for a long time,” Justice said before a game earlier in the year against Hedgesville. “One is real leadership in a positive way, and the second one is she's actually playing some defense in the James Monroe game, she led us in rebounds with 11.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“There's no question Kennedy is ahead of all our sophomores and freshmen in a lot of different categories. The biggest category and I told her this at the beginning of the season that I don't have time for her to grow up … she doesn't have two years to mature, she needs to be a basketball player now. And she's really doing it.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>How about both of them?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Speaking of the Hedgesville game, the duo were all too happy to take command against the Eagles. When the visitors zigged, the Stewarts zagged, over and over again. If you were watching the game, perhaps their sister act seemed planned, but that's not the case. That was just how the cookie crumbled. While they shared a house, their minds remained their own.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In fact, the good times have only been stopped once.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While John Marshall managed to crash the party, the Monarchs continue to be the only ones who efficiently checked the sisters. Princeton and St. Albans provided no answers. The Tigers and Red Dragons watched on as the two canned 3 after 3, then provided the muscle and leadership necessary for [player_tooltip player_id='384065' first='Caroline' last='Dotson'], Ryan White, Hannah Fuller, Makenna McClure, and the other Spartans to attack effectively in various other areas.uller battled effectively on the boards against St. Albans' [player_tooltip player_id='384296' first='Shayla' last='Montgomery']. Dotson echoed shades of her sister Emma on defense but brought a bit more offense. White and McClure continued their climb toward reaching their offensive potential. And Kennedy continued to look toward her sister for leadership while providing scoring.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“She's really making everyone around her better,” Justice said of Cadence Sunday night during an interview. “She tries so hard at making herself better and that is admirable it is really difficult to be a leader and she's worked so hard not to let herself down and she's accepted that role in a good way. She's working as hard as she can to be a senior and she's trying to be encouraging.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>'Tis working so far, too. GE sits at 5-1 with an away game against Oak Hill at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Is it going to get any easier for the sisters as the Spartans dig further into their season? No. “They aren't the fastest kids and they are going to draw more and more attention as teams are making other players try to beat them,” Justice said.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Does he think this roadblock is going to stop them from rising to the occasion?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Not really.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He's already delivered that speech, as well. “They are going to have to continue playing rock solid, any team I don't care if it is an NBA team or high school team but when the going gets tough the stars have got to really play,” he said. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Based on what we've seen so far this season, that request doesn't appear to be a future issue. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->