Girls Newcomer of the Year: Lang Provides Instant Impact For Springdale

 STAFF PHOTO JASON IVESTER Kierra Lang of Springdale is the All-NWA Media Girls Newcomer of the Year.
STAFF PHOTO JASON IVESTER Kierra Lang of Springdale is the All-NWA Media Girls Newcomer of the Year.

SPRINGDALE -- Kierra Lang could see her breath rising in front of her during every frigid January pre-dawn workout in the unheated auxiliary gym at Springdale High.

It didn't take long for her to learn to prep for the cold and show up wearing sweats and a hoodie to the 5 a.m. workouts. Still, it wasn't the best of conditions.

All-NWA Media Girls Newcomer Of The Year

Kierra Lang

School: Springdale High

Height: 5-8

Class: Sophomore

Position: Guard

Notable: Voted all-state by 7A/6A-West coaches. … Led team in scoring (12.7 points per game) assists (3.7) and steals (1.5) while ranking second in rebounding (5.4) and 3-pointers made (23). … Plays AAU ball for Camp Unity, which is coached by her father, Shannon Lang.

"It was very cold in there," Lang said. "Nose red, looking like Rudolph."

But the Springdale sophomore point guard embraced the before-school workouts with her father and several other Bulldogs' basketball players. Extra work that started as a way to help her recover from a nagging knee injury ended up becoming a staple of her weekday mornings.

"I have to keep it in my mind that there's always somebody out there better than me," Lang said. "And I've got to get better and better every day so I can meet that expectation that my dad wants, and my family wants, and of course me."

There weren't many players better than Lang when she stepped on a court this year as the explosive 5-foot-8 guard led Springdale to a breakthrough season in her first year of varsity action. She often controlled games with her athleticism and playmaking ability, skills that led to her earning all-state honors.

"(Sophomore) Desiree Mack told me that having Kierra on the floor makes everybody's jobs a thousand times easier," Springdale coach Heather Hunsucker said. "We are extremely comfortable when the ball is in Kierra's hands that she is going to make the right decision. ... When she has the ball, she might be as quick as anybody in the state."

Lang averaged a team-high 12.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, a team-best 3.7 assists and a team-high 1.5 steals per game for a Springdale team that advanced to the Class 7A state quarterfinals by winning its first playoff game since 2003 in its first appearance since 2009.

Her impact on the Lady Bulldogs' success was apparent when she went down with a knee injury twice. Springdale was just 3-4 without Lang in the lineup, including a loss at Alma in which she played less than half of the first quarter before injuring her knee. But the Lady Bulldogs were 13-7 with her in the lineup, including impressive victories down the stretch as they closed the year by winning seven straight with her in the lineup before losing in the state quarterfinals.

It was a finish that provided a glimpse of what the Lady Bulldogs expect to be a promising future.

"Our expectation is to win conference, of course," Lang said of next year. "And get that state ring."

Hunsucker knew she was getting a difference maker when Lang transferred in from Fayetteville. Lang used to attend Fayetteville youth basketball camps while Hunsucker served as a Lady Purple'Dog assistant.

"I've watched Kierra grow up," Hunsucker said. "I remember when she wore goggles and would come to our camps. I remember when she was real little. I watched her play against our George Junior High team. "I knew very, very early she was going to be a special player in high school. I did not know when that impact would happen. But the very first game when we played Russellville early and she looked as good as she did, I realized that she was special. She's the real deal."

It didn't take Lang's Springdale teammates much time to figure out they were adding an elite player to the mix.

"There was a practice, actually, before we ever started playing," senior Baiyinnah Taylor said. "I saw Kierra handling that ball and I was like, 'Oh my gosh, we're going to be amazing.'"

Taylor graduates this spring.

But Springdale fans still have two more years to watch Lang make plays.

Sports on 03/30/2014

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