The UC High Girls Basketball Team works together to improve upon their skills and build on how they compete as a team. As the season progresses, the girls look to score big and rack up some more wins for UC High.

   Initially, the team had to make big adjustments due to the number of senior players they lost to graduation. Junior Kilee Horner shared, “As a team, we struggled with losing seniors and trying to find a new team dynamic for this year.” “We lost our two main scorers, so we haven’t been putting up as many points per game, so getting open shots and more looks to score is something we work on every practice,” continued Senior Captain Riley Reinhardt. 

   The girls work tirelessly at their practices, making adjustments after games, working on their individual skills, and building their endurance as a team. Senior Alexis Peterson affirmed, “We have about two to three games a week. On the days we don’t have games, we practice for two hours. It is very important to both the coaches and the team that all of us stay in good shape.” The girls mentioned their intense conditioning routine and how, as challenging as it may be, they believe it makes them better as a team and gets them ready for games. 

   Senior Sofia Bly added that as the season progresses, the team has gotten into shape and improved with every passing game. “We have learned how to play as a team, and everyone has developed a grasp on their role on the team and how to best benefit the team. We have great chemistry and we are each individually improving our basketball skills day by day,” added Reinhardt. 

   However far the team has come throughout the season, one thing that has been left unchanged is the support they have for one another. Junior Soline Grimbert shared, “The best part of playing would have to be the team dynamic — everyone on the team is so supportive and uplifting that it feels like a little family. “My favorite part of playing basketball is when we play as a team. It feels so good when coach draws up a play, or the point guard calls a play and we execute it, all doing something to make the play effective,” explained Reinhardt.

   Looking ahead, the team hopes to keep up their strong level of play and continue working hard together. “I think we have a good rest of the season ahead of us and our main goal is to win League. As for CIF, we’re working hard to be able to play as well as we can and make a deep run,” said Grimbert. “Our ultimate goal is to put more numbers on the banner,” revealed Reinhardt.

   As for next season, the girls have high hopes for the future of the program. “We have a lot of outstanding juniors who already have starting positions on varsity, and we have many talented sophomores coming up that will contribute to the success of the UC High Girls Basketball program,” shared Peterson. “We’re losing some vital players next year so it’s going to be a challenge, but I still think the team is going to be good, especially with our promising Junior Varsity Team,” added Grimbert.