Junior guard Kyla Schaapveld scored eight points and dished out five assists to help the 15th-ranked Ankeny girls’ basketball team to a 79-36 victory over visiting Urbandale on Friday. She went 2-of-4 from 3-point range as part of her squad’s 13-of-25 shooting from behind the arc.
Schaapveld has played in all 20 games with 16 starts for coach Nate Tobey, helping the Hawkettes to records of 5-10 in the CIML Conference and 9-11 overall. She is averaging 3.7 points and 2.1 rebounds per game.
Here is some inside info on Schaapveld:
Congratulations on Friday’s win. I know Urbandale is struggling, but do you think that might have been your team’s best game of the season?
Although our team had good ball movement and played together really well, I think our best game thus far was last week against Waukee Northwest. We have been putting in a lot of hard work, and I think our best game of the year is yet to come.
It was your team’s Senior Night on Friday. Do you think it was an emotional night for the seniors, knowing that their high school careers are coming to an end soon?
Yes, Senior Night was an emotional night for our entire team. I will miss all of our seniors and have really enjoyed playing with them.
One of your team’s seniors, Savannah Gage, poured in a season-high 23 points on 10-of-12 shooting. Have you learned a lot from Savannah by playing alongside her for the last two seasons?
Savannah had a great game, which I’m sure made it extra special since it was Senior Night. Savannah has always been someone I can turn to for advice and has helped me get comfortable playing varsity basketball.
You’ve already scored almost twice as many points as you did last year, when you played in 22 games with five starts as a sophomore. Do you feel a lot more comfortable with your role on the team this season?
Yes, I feel like I have a lot more confidence this year being a starter on the team. I give credit to my teammates as they have made me feel more comfortable on the court.
After getting off to a 4-0 start, your team suffered through a seven-game losing streak before going 5-4 since then. How was your team able to survive that grueling stretch of games, and what has been the key to the turnaround over the last month?
We continued to work hard on both sides of the ball. We have been more aggressive on defense and have really figured out our defensive rotation and have been moving the ball better on offense, finding the open shot.
Your team nearly knocked off No. 3 Waukee Northwest last Monday, but the Wolves were able to hold on for a 54-51 win. Did that game give your team confidence, though, that you can potentially beat one of the elite squads in Class 5A?
Yes, it definitely boosted the team’s confidence. When we play together as a team, have effective ball movement, are aggressive on defense, and limit the turnovers, we can compete with some of the best in the state.
You made a 3-point goal off an inbounds play in the final half-second of the third quarter to give your team a 41-35 lead. Did you think you could get the shot off before the buzzer?
I knew it was going to be close so I tried to catch and release the ball as fast as I could.
Your team will host No. 2 Dowling Catholic in your regular-season finale on Tuesday. What will be the keys to avenging your 60-40 loss at Dowling on Jan. 31?
Dowling is a great team with a lot of athletic talent. The key to beating Dowling will be to play together as a team, execute our offense, rebound on both ends, and commit very few turnovers.
Based on the current rankings, it’s very possible that your team could be placed in the same regional with Dowling when the pairings are announced on Wednesday. If that happens, you could play the Maroons for a third time in 26 days in the regional final on Feb. 25. How would you feel about getting that draw?
Our team will prepare the best that we can no matter who our opponent is, and hopefully we can come out ahead in the end.
Are you planning to play basketball in college?
Yes, that is my goal. I have been putting in a lot of time outside of practice to reach my goal.
What are you going to study?
I am interested in studying accounting.