Determination Personified in Pigtails.
“Do you have room for another 8th grade girl on your team?”
Earlier this spring, Maeve walked into the gym appearing nervous for her tryout. It was her first time playing AAU Basketball and I can only wonder what was going through her mind.
She stood out in the very first drill. Maeve plays the game with a ferocity unlike any other we’ve seen. She plays in attack mode the entire game and can play all five positions. She can handle the ball, shoot the ball, and defend with the best of them.
She is determination personified in pigtails, and will get the rebound and dive on the floor for loose balls. I pointed her out to a young 4th grade girl and said watch her play. Maeve rebounded the ball at her highest point. She plays so hard that it is difficult to take her out of the game but she plays so hard she needs breaks. She doesn’t like being taken out.
Maeve’s style of play allows her teammates to play with confidence. When they shoot, they know she’s likely going to get the rebound. If they get beat on defense, Maeve will be there to help. She literally was a 30 point plus/minus differential in a tournament after missing the first game against the same opponent one day later.
She will crack a smile from time to time but she wants to win every drill, every game, every time. Much of her instinct on the basketball court comes from her time on the soccer pitch. We can only imagine the havoc she causes on the soccer pitch when competing for a 50/50 ball. During drills in practice, players will ask, “Can we have Maeve on our team?”
Maeve plays on our 8th grade and our 9th grade Hoop Group Academic League teams and sometimes fills for our 10th grade team. She’ll attend St. Hubert’s this fall and join her friend Mia, who also joined Next Play this year. They will be a formidable duo in the Catholic League this year.
A few years back, a coach from the Philly area called Muffet McGraw, then University of Notre Dame Head Women’s coach and said coach, “We have this girl who can really play, can shoot it, rebounds well, has good size and has a great feel for the game.” Coach McGraw would reply as she always did, “Is she aggressive?” If the answer wasn’t a resounding “Yes”, Muffet wasn’t interested.
Muffet would have loved the way Maeve plays!
We have no doubt that Maeve join the list of girls who are being recruited to play college basketball. She’s a role model who plays hard every play and is just beginning to scratch the surface on her basketball potential.
In short, she makes practices more competitive, always gives her team a chance to win, and makes her teammates better.
