Van Buren girls’ competitiveness

While most teenagers are sleeping in on Saturday morning and enjoying a lazy weekend, Halie Jennen is coaching tomorrow's Lady Pointers. "We love it," Jennen said. "The parents bought us two personalized clipboards, and the girls wrote on it and put pictures on it. That was awesome. The girls are great." Jennen and senior teammate Lani Snowden are coaching a third-and-fourth grade girls team while Jamilyn Kinney is coaching a first-and-second grade boys team. "We have several kids on our team who are doing some youth league coaching, but Halie is coaching a third- and fourth-grade team," Van Buren head coach Chris Bryant said. "They're intense. They're competitive with those kids just like are on the floor." The team coached by Jennen and Snowden, who have been best friends and teammates since the third grade, are 8-1 and currently playing in their post-season tournament, but they'll have to miss coaching them the rest of the tournament because Van Buren's state tournament games are about the same time. "We played our first round on Saturday, and we won," Jennen said. "We're going to have to miss it because of our game. We're not going to get to coach them the rest of the year." They started coaching the group in December. "We bought them Christmas presents," Jennen said. "They're a great group. I'm going to miss them. They asked us if we were going to coach them next year, and we told them we had to go college." The experience has been more than just coaching, though, that has endeared Jennen to the players, and vice-versa. "It's been great," Jennen said. "A lot of them come to our games to support us. Before we run out, we'll give them high fives or have them come down on the floor and do a handshake with us. That's been pretty neat." The Lady Pointers also have a group of younger kids waiting outside the locker room after home games, waiting for their chance to mingle with them. "They've embraced that, they really enjoy that," Bryant said. "Their whole mission is to leave the program better than they found it whether it's coaching young people or being accessible after games and taking pictures and investing in these young people. After a game what can be more rewarding than seeing a lot of elementary and middle school aged kids waiting to come spend time with and take pictures with your kids." to sideline Previous HIDE CAPTION Van Buren guard Jamilyn Kinney, left, draws a foul from Fayetteville guard Lauren Holmes on a layup attempt at Claire Bates Arena on Friday Feb. 24, 2017. [AARON SHAFFER/SPECIAL TO THE TIMES RECORD] HIDE CAPTION Van Buren guard Halie Jennen, left, drives past Fayetteville guard Lauren Holmes at Claire Bates Arena on Friday, Feb. 24, 2017. [AARON SHAFFER/SPECIAL TO THE TIMES RECORD] HIDE CAPTION Van Buren guard Lani Snowden drives to the basket as Fayetteville guard Naomi Logan defends at Claire Bates Arena on Friday, Feb. 24, 2017. "We love it," Jennen said. "The parents bought us two personalized clipboards, and the girls wrote on it and put pictures on it. That was awesome. The girls are great." Jennen and senior teammate Lani Snowden are coaching a third-and-fourth grade girls team while Jamilyn Kinney is coaching a first-and-second grade boys team. "We have several kids on our team who are doing some youth league coaching, but Halie is coaching a third- and fourth-grade team," Van Buren head coach Chris Bryant said. "They're intense. They're competitive with those kids just like are on the floor." The team coached by Jennen and Snowden, who have been best friends and teammates since the third grade, are 8-1 and currently playing in their post-season tournament, but they'll have to miss coaching them the rest of the tournament because Van Buren's state tournament games are about the same time. "We played our first round on Saturday, and we won," Jennen said. "We're going to have to miss it because of our game. We're not going to get to coach them the rest of the year.

THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Van Buren High School Athletics

VAN BUREN GIRLS’ COMPETITIVENESS

LELAND BARCLAY

Times Record | 3/2/2017

PHOTO CREDIT: Van Buren High School Athletics