I had the opportunity to sit down with DCHS girls Coach Joe Pat Cope the other day and ask him some questions on his recent success and about the future of his program, this is what he had to say
SR: Do you feel that this season was a success as far as a 13-16 record goes and who you thought your team was as an identity?
Coach Cope:  I do; we have kind of raised the bar over the past couple of  years. When I took over three years ago, five wins was the most that they had had since 1999. For three years, they only won one game each season and two years they won two games. For 10 years straight they failed to win a district game; they lost 150 district games.
SR: The district that you play in is statistically the toughest team in the state, do you believe the same thing?
Coach Cope: Yes, the number-one and the number-two teams in the state are still playing in the regional tournament and they are both in our district,  and also we have four teams in our district that are ranked in the top 10 in the state.  We came away with only two district wins but we were happy about that, that's the most second most district wins in 13 years.
We have won 46 ball games in three years,  in the past decade from 2000-2010 they only won 22 games and lost 182. So these girls have come in and turned around a program that they said “you couldn’t turn around and you can’t win at DeKalb County.” Well, we can and we are and we continue to get better. Now what we have to do is get stronger, get our off-season program going and try and compete with the top five teams in the state who are also in our district and it’s been that way for 20 years, we can’t sit back and cry about that, we got to try and do something about it.
SR: Your team will be losing Alex Meadows as she graduates. Do you feel you have some talent coming from eighth grade to high school that will make that missing piece a little easier and will the players you already have step up and take that leadership role vacated by Meadows?
Coach Cope: Losing Alex Meadows was huge! And we have got to find a way to try and replace Alex. Ever since I have been here, Alex has been here. She has started every game since I have been a coach. She is a leader on the floor and a leader in the locker room; she was just a leader.
 Next year can be a very successful season, and we have a good core of players coming back, but I have got to have somebody step up and and be the player Alex was, which is that team  leader. Next year will be the first year I don’t have a starter that I had from my first team. Loren Cripps, a freshmen, played very well this year I think she can step up and be a  voice in this district. Chelsea Lewis could jump in the role of team leader. I need Danielle Tyson and Lydia Foutch to step up.
Next season will about be the same as this season; we will have to fight and claw every night in our district as  most of our district opponents have underclassmen that will be back next year.
Right before the season ended  Gordonsville  came in here on a Saturday night, it was Senior Night, and we beat  Gordonsville, I don't know if everybody knows this or not, but they won their district,  and they are still playing basketball in the regional tourney. If you look at our record outside district 8-AA we’re 20 games above 500.  But we have just got to be able to compete with the teams in our district and very few teams across the state can.  Livingston has got one or two losses all year, Upperman has got just a couple losses all year. Cannon County has three or four losses. Nobody always beats those teams; we are not the only team that's gets beat by them. And to get to that level, and if we do get to that level, then we will be an elite team in the state. Since 1990 Livingston Academy has five state titles. Upperman had been to the state tournament six or seven times. Cannon County has got a state title, and was a final four team last year. If we can win in 8 AA and win our district, then you will see us in Murfreesboro because we will be in the state tournament.
SR: Upperman was ranked the number-one team in the state when they came to DeKalb for the second meeting. Upperman just slipped by, winning by only five. Did that show you what this team can do and what they are capable of.
Coach Cope: That was a huge night for our girls  it help give them confidence after that. White County a team we had only beaten once in the past 25 years, and to go into their gym and get a victory in the last game of the season is huge.
SR: If you had to point out a weakness or an area that you felt that this team needed to get better at what would it be?
Coach Cope: Ball handling, turnovers, when we competed with Upperman that night  we had 13 turnovers all night which is still a lot but i told the team if you keep it under 15 turnover then you will stay in it. Wel we lost by five which was a huge improvement from the first time we played them when they beat us by 34.
You can’t just keep giving the ball to the other team. Cannon County we had 33 turnovers  when they beat us at the end of the year. A lot of that is the pressure and the way they play but we have still got to be able to handle the ball. I have got some great shooters returning but wehave got to get the ball down the court  we give up to many easy baskets.
SR: What will your team have to do in order to feel like you had a success and what are your expectations for next season. When i took this job i went back and I pulled up every season starting back at the new decade. And we decided we wanted a double digit winning season which had not been done in over 10 years and we have  beat teams that they have never beat. So do i consider this year a sucess. Yes