POULSBO — The Poulsbo Junior High girls basketball team is set to compete in the 2006 season under much of the same philosophy it had last year. Since half the squad is returning from 2005, the Lady Panthers should hit the ground running.

The team’s focus has been driven by hustle and defense through preseason practices, said head coach Karla DeVries. She added that early on, the team’s primary strengths appear to be its experience and quickness.

“I feel like they know the system,” DeVries said of her six returning players — Darcey Hughes, Jordan Chargualaf, Danica Good, Kelle Taplin, Krista Vestman and Shawna Williams. “(But) I expect that they come ready to learn and I expect them to work as hard as they can, every day, practice or game.”

Work ethic could be what sets the Panthers apart from the rest of the teams in their league this year, DeVries said.

But when Poulsbo hosted the Central Kitsap Lady Cougar Cubs in the Valentines Day season opener, it was the Panthers’ nervousness which separated the two teams. Even so, most elements of a great team, including defensive ferocity, offensive patience and abundant hustle, were apparent in Poulsbo’s game from the get-go.

“Our biggest weakness is game experience for the whole group of 13,” DeVries said the day after the 48-39 loss to CK. “(In our first game), at least two of the four quarters were dominated by nervousness.”

But an underlying assurance was also present in the team’s first game as the Panthers took open shots without hesitation. The confidence only lacked in the follow-through as Poulsbo’s shooting percentage sagged through the end of the first half.

The Cubs took a nine-point lead into halftime. Then in the second half, Poulsbo gathered poise thanks to the leadership of Taplin, who scored 17. And as the Panthers’ shots started falling, they came as close as within five, but CK held on to win the game.

“I don’t think we executed very well (in our first game), but to be brutally honest, I think we have a great team,” said freshman guard Krista Vestman. “All the girls get along real well and I think having our sixth man coming off the bench will help us a lot. That’s what our teamwork is all about.”

DeVries’ philosophy this year is that the girls on the floor should give everything they’ve got, then the next girl off the bench should be able to step into the game without missing a beat.

The key to achieving that type of fluid system comes back to working hard at practice, DeVries said.

“They are really learning how far they can push themselves,” she said the practices. “I don’t know if they knew before just how hard they could work.”

With a new format in place for the girls Olympic junior high school league this year, the Lady Panthers have a tangible goal in sight. A postseason tournament has been scheduled for the end of March to decide a champion of the girls junior high rank this year, and Poulsbo’s eyes are on the prize, DeVries said.

First, Poulsbo has a massive bounty sitting directly in front of them, as they will look to knock the Lady Cavs off their undefeated pedestal, Tuesday.

Tip-off is at 3 p.m. in the Panthers’ house.