FERRIDAY — With a supporting cast and a team on the rise, LaKeshanna Harris’ senior season appeared to be one for the ages.

However, Harris soon found herself as the lone senior with a new group of teammates and with the weight of a team on her shoulders.

“There is a lot on her,” Ferriday head coach Lisa Abron said. “We lost some key players from last year, so everything pretty much falls on her shoulders. It is a huge responsibility for her, but each game I see improvement out of her.”

Harris plays point guard for the Lady Trojans, and with that comes the most responsibility on the court.

“Not only am I the oldest one on the team, but I’m the captain of the team too,” Harris said. “So everybody feeds off me. If I have a downfall, the whole team is going to have a downfall. I have to make sure that I am upright and lifted to play so they can, because they look at me.”

Abron said for Harris, the realization hasn’t totally hit that this will be the last time she will be suiting up for Ferriday.

“I don’t think she realizes how much this carries, but we have been preaching it to her every day,” Abron said. “It is special, especially since she is the one senior, but it hasn’t really dawned on her how important that role is.”

For Harris, the focus falls more on her game. While she has been the high-scorer in multiple games this season for the Lady Trojans, she is beginning to put up numbers in the assist column as well.

“Your shots are going to come,” she said. “But you have to move the defense for that to happen. If you don’t move the defense, you aren’t going to be able to do much. If I’m relaxing with the ball, then they are relaxing on defense. It isn’t really all about shooting, because points will come, but you have to move the ball.”

Abron has also seen an improvement from Harris at the critical position.

“I’ve been telling her to spread it around a little bit more,” she said. “Because as a point guard, you have to be able to see the whole floor, and she is doing that.”

And while her game is improving, Harris is also working to unite a team that was faced with adversity at the beginning of the year.

“We had to learn to play as a team,” Harris said. “We realized just the five starters couldn’t do it ourselves, and that we had to play as a team. If you can’t play as a team, you can’t win. Everybody has to get their shine on.”

Harris plans to not have her career stop after Ferriday, with hopes of playing college basketball.

“I want to go to Alcorn State and play,” she said. “I think it’ll be awesome. I’ve always wanted to play college ball.”