As her team shoots free throws, running down the court after each missed shot, sophomore Katie McCue charges past them on the brink of collapse. Her mindset is strong, though, as her coach encourages resilience and perseverance through the last five minutes of an exhausting Saturday afternoon practice.
Coach Kevin Blunt says mentality is the key strength of the girls varsity basketball team.
“My favorite part of the team is the rhythm we can get into when playing and everyone is helping each other,” McCue said.
McCue said her team endured a soul-crushing 0-24 season last year. Ranked in the A league due to the legacy of the 2022-2023 team, last year’s team found themselves playing teams with twice their experience.
These mainly underclassmen girls had to combat juniors and seniors on the opposing teams with college recruitment offerss. On top of that a new head coach, Blunt, was brought on.
Sophomore Ella Hoy, a point and shooting guard, said Blunt, has been on and off coaching girls basketball for the past 20 years.
“Last year, I think he was getting used to his new position here, so things were a bit slower,” Hoy said. “This year, he has really leaped into practice to make sure that the team can reach their full potential this year.”
Blunt said the team still faces challenges, having only four freshmen, five sophomores and one junior.
“We don’t have anybody who has won league titles, so experiences are limited,” Blunt said. “It’s hard to share your experience of winning if you haven’t won. We don’t have any veterans on the team, per se. That affects us a lot because we have girls who were just playing middle school last year, and they’re thrusted into playing varsity. There’s a big jump there.”
And junior Camryn Ogawa said being the only upperclassmen on the team has been difficult.
“There’s definitely pressure being the only upperclassman on varsity,” Ogawa said. “I do wish I could lead the team better. However, I don’t have all the experience that the other upperclassmen who had played before had when it came to varsity basketball. Since my freshman year, I was on JV — the sudden jump in sophomore year from JV to varsity had been kind of scary, and then the expectation to lead the team was intimidating. I can’t imagine the feelings that the freshmen this year have. That’s why I try my best to make the whole team feel welcomed and appreciated.”
Hoy said the greatest struggle with not having many upperclassmen players is the lack of leadership.
“With such a young team, it’s been hard to establish that dynamic,” she said. “Having someone who has experience playing varsity basketball for a couple of years is definitely important for newer players who are getting comfortable at a higher level of play.”
Blunt said he plans to combat this disadvantage by prioritizing gaining experience through consistent practice and scrimmages.
“They play and learn how to play,” Blunt said. “A lot of it is reps. Them playing against older players and seeing how physical the players can be. It’s just the mentality of how they approach the game that’s different from someone who’s never been there.”
For Hoy’s part, she said she enjoys Blunt’s coaching style and appreciates his experience as a former basketball player.
“Coach Blunt brings a lot of experience with him as a coach as a D1 and professional player — he knows what he is talking about,” Hoy said. “He also has a really constructive coach style where he focuses on perfecting the smaller details that will ultimately make us better players and athletes.”
Hoy also said she has improved through Blunt’s push for mental strength and is excited about the new underclassmen.
“This year, the returning players already understand what it’s like and have improved all aspects of our game,” Hoy said. “We’re also so lucky to have such a talented freshman class that is adjusting to playing varsity and is going to bring a lot to the team this year.”
Blunt said he has seen improvement since last season and expects to win this season.
“Last year, we were losing games by 20 to 30 points,” Blunt said. “By the end of the year, we were only losing by about 10 to 15 points. So that’s a big reduction. I think, this year, with the schedule we’ve moved down in the league. Now we have a chance to win some games this year.”
Coaching six days a week for two hours each day, Blunt said he uses multiple methods to teach his players, depending on their styles of learning.
“I know some of my girls are visual learners and some of them are audio learners,” Blunt said. “So I always have a board with me, draw it out for the visuals and also say it. We watch game films and things like this so they can see what works.”
Basketball is near and dear to many of the players’ hearts and the team environment seems to be growing.
“I have been playing basketball since I was around 5 years old. My whole family has been playing basketball at one point in their life and my Dad has been our coach through our time during middle school and below. I followed my siblings footsteps and played basketball with the same passion they had,” Ogawa said.
Blunt says the team bond strengthens as the girls grow closer through additional activities outside of practice and games.
“We’re going to be planning some off the court events like going to the Santa Clara University and watching games,” Blunt said. “We’re going to do a cycle run for our fundraiser just to get them out of the court and to do stuff for the community. Their chemistry is slowly growing. They’re young — it’s a slow process, but it’s getting better.”
Hoy said the team atmosphere has grown and the team is beginning to overcome disadvantages stemming from their youth.
“I think we all really like spending time with each other,” Hoy said. “Everyone on the team is very different and brings their own personality and skills, and I think variety is super important in a team.”
