First-year Enumclaw High girls basketball coach Beth Madill knows all elements of the game must come together at the same time for a team to be successful.

Madill hasn’t been able to orchestrate all of the game’s many factors yet, as her team struggled to an 0-4 beginning, but she can see light at the end of the tunnel.

“We just need more time to jell as a team and put together all of the pieces consistently,” Madill said. “In the last two weeks we have played some of the toughest 3A teams in the state.”

The Hornets lost to Bonney Lake 69-38 Dec. 4, fell to Sumner 63-43 on Dec. 8 and got crushed Saturday at Mercer Island 79-28.

“The Islanders are a great team,” Madill said of the latest foe. “There was a point where I had to just turn my head and look away. It didn’t matter if we got up their face or stood back and waited for the rebounds off their long shots. they basically have a three guard offense and all of those girls kept hitting the three pointers.”

But, like Madill told her troops, you can’t teach or coach experience. “You just have to hang in there and keep playing the games to earn, develop and cultivate that,” she said.

Boxing out under the boards and playing better defense are priorities Madill sees as being the most vital.

The Hornets hosted Peninsula Tuesday; results came too late to report here but will be posted at www.courierherald.com. Enumclaw will travel to Clover Park Thursday for its last league tilt before a holiday break. There won’t be any time to collect cobwebs, though, as Enumclaw is slated to play in the St. Martin’s Tournament Dec. 29 and 30.