Photo by Jim Ridolphi
Goochland junior Carrie Mills (21) has taken a constructive view on this difficult season with the Bulldogs’ girls’ basketball team.

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  Junior Carrie Mills is using a lot of talent and a positive attitude to enjoy what could be considered a challenging season on the girls’ basketball court. The team is still looking for its first victory, but with each game, the squad improves and gets closer.

  Mills, wise beyond her 17 years, keeps it all in perspective.

  “We don’t look at the record and our efforts are not always reflected on the scoreboard,” she said. “We’re working harder in practice, trying to get the little things right and it’s showing on the court. I’ve seen so much improvement since the beginning of the season,” she added.

  The junior runs an offense that hinges on discipline and making the right defensive reads. “It’s like being the quarterback on a football team,” she said. “It’s my job to pick up the defense and make sure we’re in the right position to run the play.”

  The extra responsibility doesn’t deter her from playing an active role on the offensive end of the equation, either. She’s always around the ball and finding an open teammate for a shot, hustling always.

  Even with the losing record, Mills indicated that the program is heads above last year’s team. “We got down to seven girls last year,” she said. “This year there is a lot of enthusiasm and everyone is excited to be out here.”

  The co-captain said she’s confident this team can compete and most of the losses were against teams Mills considers ‘beatable.’ “We’ve been in almost every one of those games and had leads in many of them,” she said.

  Mills is a true devotee of the game, beginning her career in sixth grade playing middle school basketball for Goochland. “I’ve been playing ever since,” she said. “I like everything about it, the intensity, the teamwork and the fast pace of the game.”

  She hopes the intensified team practices of late will result in more than just moral victories.

  “We need to keep putting together four quarters of basketball and not turning the ball over,” Mills said. “I think the wins will come if we do those things.”

  Bulldog coach Sarah Nicholson has been with Mills since eighth grade, and the two have developed a good working relationship, both on and off the court. “She never gave up on us and she always has our back,” Nicholson said. “We can go to her with things outside of basketball and she’s a great support system.”

  Mills skills and attitude have come a long way since the two first met. “Carrie’s attitude over the past two years has improved greatly,” Nicholson said. “I’ve had her since she was an eighth grader and she has come a long way. That is one of the reasons her teammates and the coaching staff selected her as team co-captain this season. She may not be one of our biggest scoring threats but she helps to set her teammates up for the open shot.”

  After meeting each team in the district once already in the season, Mills is hoping for better results on the second go round. “This is like a second chance for us and it’s our turn to start winning,” Mills said.

  The junior has her eye on University of Miami or Howard University to study mass communications when she finishes high school. “I know it’s a competitive field, but I like competition.”

  Mills is the daughter of Winfrey and Betty Mills and she has five sisters and one brother.

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