Junior Caitlyn Leonard has been playing basketball ever since she was a little girl. She started off playing in the Malden Girls Youth Basketball League and then advanced to Malden Travel basketball before coming to the high school. Leonard was excited to begin her high school basketball career as a freshman because she loves the game and was ready for a stronger commitment. Now as a junior, she has been on the varsity basketball team since her sophomore year. As well as being on the varsity basketball team, she has also been playing field hockey and softball since her freshmen year.
Leonard has always considered basketball one of her favorite sports because she is able to work hard with her team to carry out the plays. “It is very rewarding when we all work together and play hard” says Leonard. The special thing about the girls varsity basketball team is their intense energy and their ability to constantly build each other up not only during games, but during drills and conditioning. The constant cheers Leonard gets from her teammates inspires her to work her hardest. Leonard’s main goal for her team this season is for them to continue to push ourselves especially on defense and to keep our intensity up. As for herself, she plans to get to know the new teammates and use what she learns to work with them as a team.
One of the girls’ GBL opponents, Everett, is Leonard’s favorite team to face. Not only are they part of the same league and competing for the same title, but they are great competition which pushes the Malden team to work even harder. Leonard’s favorite position to play during the season is shooting guard. The most challenging thing about basketball is having tight defense. “If something goes wrong you must recover quickly. You also must read what the offense is doing in order to react quickly” says Leonard.
To all new athletes, Leonard would advise them to try their hardest no matter what sport they play. “You should make strong connections with your teammates because you not only will work together better but you also will create bonds with new people that will last a lifetime” continues Leonard. Her advice is taken from her own experiences while on the team. Leonard predicts that this season will be great because of all the hard teamwork and intensity that this team demonstrates thus far. She will be working very hard this season in hopes that an opportunity to play basketball in college will arise.
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