It is very unusual to have freshmen on varsity — but this year’s Girls Basketball team doesn’t have one freshman but four.
Jane Jordan, number 3, has 59 rebounds and 98 points across 11 games.
Joise Lovelace, number 11, has 2 blocks and 10 assists across 8 games.
Lucia Llanes, number 12, has 8 deflections and 8 steals across 5 games.
Sadie Jordan, number 21, has on average 9.4 points per game scoring a total of 108 points across 11 games.
“Our freshmen on varsity have had a lot of experience on high competing teams,” says Head Coach Michael Lovelace. “They have shown they can compete at this level. It is impressive because it is hard to play against juniors and seniors.”
As the Fall pre-season was slipping by, the freshmen were staying in shape to not just be ready for the season but are ready to excel.
“I was on the swim team, so that helped my conditions,” says Sadie Jordan. “Since I wasn’t doing basketball I was doing [drills] at home like ball handling and shooting.”
Instead of swimming, Lovelace played soccer for her Michigan Tigers club team and did “extra workouts and shooting practice.”
Everyone is trying to be the best and practices aren’t easy but the team environment is all working towards a common goal: to win.
“It is definitely more intense than what I’m used to,” says Jane Jordan.
Sadie Jordan adds, “I think everyone wants to get better and everyone is working towards a common purpose.”
As the freshmen are playing against hard teams and hard competition they are doing really well. “I mean [they] are very young,” says Coach Lovelace. “They have shown in the past that they can play against very good competition, and this is a different type of competition but they are doing really well… and as they play more they will get the speed of play down and be very successful.”
The team is noticing value in the freshmen – not just recognizing it but supporting their unique skills.
“They are very important to the team,” says Gabriela Arocha (‘26), “They bring important skills [and] a new style of play that other teams and players couldn’t.”
