They have had a variety of combinations but none have really been successful for several seasons now.

Enter new head coach Sean Lesley who takes over from Preston Hall.

The good news is that the Demons have eight seniors and four juniors back from a team that went 3-25 overall and was quickly taken out of the state tournament by conference rival Egyptian at the Goreville Regional.

The coach will turn to the seniors with the most experience and the first one on that list is 6-foot-1 senior forward Colin Hall.

Dongola will also have back Evan Treat, a 6-foot senior.

Andrew Tarpley, a 6-foot-2 senior, also returns along with 6-foot Hunter Freeman and 6-foot Cameron Hogue.

Rounding out the senior group is 5-foot-11 Joey Thomas, 6-foot Ben Smith and 5-foot-5 Jose Zavala.

The juniors include 5-foot-11 Hunter McCommons, 5-foot-7 Matthew Aden, 6-foot Matthew Prout and 5-foot-7 Kaleb Duke.

“I am returning six players with multiple years of varsity experience with all of them having started varsity games at some point during their high school careers. I am expecting big minutes and production from those six guys. As a team we just plan to go out there and be competitive. We are going to be aggressive at both ends of the court, work hard and play together to be as successful as we can. I am excited for the big group of seniors I have and the ability to go 10 guys deep on a nightly basis,” said Coach Lesley.

OUTLOOK – The Demons have some experience returning, which is should make things better against the teams they will meet. A few extra wins this season for a new coach might be in the works.