Thursday, March 8, 2012

Jillian - basketball

Basketball season number two for Jillian - a 2nd & 3rd grade squad. By the 2nd to last game of the season, things 'clicked' for her and she started playing more aggressively. She had always played tough defense, but was a little shy when it came to offense. I challenged her to take 8 shots during one game and it must have been the incentive she needed. She worked her way inside, shot the ball rather than always passing, and grabbed lots of rebounds. So proud of how much she learned this season!
One of her many shot attempts in her last two games.

Always one to play tough defense, here she took it further
- check out the photo below --
she stole the ball!



The opposing team's best score maker - Jillian shut her out!

At the beginning of the season, Jillian wouldn't have gone after the ball - here she is at the last game, determined to get it!

Team photo after the last game - Jillian made lots of new friends!

Delaney - basketball

Delaney played basketball for her 2nd year this winter. Her team was called "Blue Ice" and although they were the youngest and smallest team in the league, they played aggressively and had a fun season. Delaney proudly wore jersey #1 - owning her small size! There were some big changes this year moving up the the 4-6th grade team. High school players refereed the games, calling double dribbling, traveling and some fouls. The coaches also focused on teaching the girls positions and plays. Delaney took this all in stride and did a great job learning the plays and improving her ball handling skills.
Delaney plays quick and smart - she's a great defender, paying attention to both the ball and her player. Here she gets her hands up on defense!
Point guard - making Dad proud!

To quote Ryan "Delaney drove the lane, pulled up and took a shot from 10 feet and buried it! She was so pumped!"


Here is a photo of Delaney's team after their last game - two players are missing. Like I mentioned, these girls had to play hard because there were only 8 of them (other teams had 10) and 7 were 4th graders. Great coaches make for a great experience and she can't wait to play again next year!