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Girls basketball additions: Juniors Joelle Anderson and Kailee Gifford join the varsity team
Junior Joelle Anderson prepares to lay up the ball during a varsity game this season.
January 29, 2016
Soccer players Joelle Anderson (11) and Kailee Gifford (11), who have signed to play in college, have decided to join basketball this winter sports season. Joelle will play for Pepperdine University, and Kailee is confirmed for the University of California, Berkeley.
Joelle Anderson
Joelle has some prior practice with basketball, and felt it would be interesting to come back to playing this season. In 2011, Joelle was a key player in leading the grade 6 girls basketball team to victory.
Being a part of the basketball team requires great deal of dedication and hardwork. The team practices for two hours, five days a week.
Joelle finds basketball enjoyable for a variety of reasons, and the commitment necessary rewarding.
“It’s been really fun. I enjoy the coaches this year. The new coaches are really great and our team is really awesome,” Joelle said.
The new coaches, Tomas Thompson and Dan Pringle, joined the varsity girls basketball as the new head coach and assistant coach respectively on Nov. 2.
Due to the need to constantly juggle schedules between two sports, some find playing multiple sports challenging. However, Joelle pointed out the positive points to playing more than one sport. For example, Joelle’s existing knowledge in soccer helps her with basketball conditioning.
“We run a lot in soccer, so that definitely helps me in basketball when we do conditioning, so I can keep up with everyone,” Joelle said. “It is definitely a good experience, because I can take things from basketball and soccer and relate them to each other.”
Joelle has a great relationship with her fellow teammates, and sets an example for them.
“She is always supportive and she will always be the first one to congratulate you,”Akhila Ramgiri (9), a player on Joelle’s team, said. “She is a leader in general, even when she gets upset, she bounces back and she is just such a big part of this team.”
Currently, Joelle, a point guard, has played 11 games so far, with an average of 14.2 points per game, 0.8 assists per game, 1.2 rebounds per game, 1.4 steals per game, and 0.1 blocks per game.
Joelle’s speed, stemming from her soccer experience, is incredibly beneficial to the team during the games.
“Having her on the team is really great, especially on the press when we are pressuring the other team, she is a big part of that because she provides the pressure and speed,” Akhila said. “A lot of the times we can set the pace during in game because she will steal the ball and then she’ll have a fast break by herself and nobody can catch her.”
Joelle helped the team win 52-37 on Jan. 8 against The King’s Academy by scoring 20 points. She plans to continue playing basketball next year.
Kailee Gifford
Kailee Gifford (11) runs to defense during the same varsity game this season.
Although Kailee had no previous experience in basketball, she opted to play in order to continue playing club soccer.
As a soccer player, Kailee plays with the De Anza Force Soccer Club as a defender.
“I play club soccer, and there’s a rule where you can’t play club soccer if you play high school soccer,” Kailee said. “I decided to play basketball this year, so that I can play club soccer at the same time.”
Kailee currently plays as a small forward, with a total of 12 games played, and has a mean of 2.8 points per game, 0.2 rebounds per game, and 0.2 steals per game.
While keeping up with the basketball team’s busy schedule, Kailee manages to fit in soccer practice sessions.
“I go to one or two soccer practices a week,” Kailee said. “[In total, they’re] around 10 to 12 hours [a week.]”
Kailee’s experience as a soccer player allowed her to quickly adapt to basketball.
“I’m much more soccer oriented because I’ve played a lot longer, and this is my first season of basketball,” Kailee said. “I think it’s beneficial, because I can see how finesse in soccer can translate to finesse in basketball.”
Although Kailee has never played basketball before, she is eager to learn.
“Kailee is a dynamic personality, especially when we are hanging out,” Akhila said. “She is always the happiest person around. She’s new to basketball, so she is still learning, but she’s the most enthusiastic learner I think I’ve ever seen.”
Kailee finds basketball interesting, and intends to continue playing for next season.
