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Winter sport athletes to watch: girls and boys basketball

As the basketball season moves forward, these are some athletes to watch as they help guide their teams to victory.
Jack McCaffery '25 attempts to gain possession of the ball as the referee throws it in the air.
Jack McCaffery ’25 attempts to gain possession of the ball as the referee throws it in the air.
Sophie Bergman
Grace Fincham '26 dribbles the basketball up the court during the game against Clear Creek Amana Dec. 3.
Girls basketball

Since her freshman year, junior Grace Fincham has been on fire and a valuable member of the team. Fincham has already received an offer from the University of Wisconsin Green Bay and is expected to receive more as the season continues.

Last year, she started every game and made 141 out of 265 shots, giving her an impressive 53% field goal percentage. In addition to her shooting accuracy, Fincham totaled 147 rebounds, both offensive and defensive. This year is off to a strong start for her, after just six games, she maintains a 53% field goal percentage and leads the team with 40 rebounds.

Another junior, Ava Frese, has contributed to the team’s success both offensively and defensively.  Frese has started all six games this season, tallying 21 assists and 11 steals. Her field goal percentage stands at 42.1%, the second highest on the team. Last year, she contributed significantly with 36 assists and 22 steals. Frese is definitely a player to watch this season.

Sophomore Sasha Baldwin was quite the player last year and is expected to dominate on the court this year as well. Although she didn’t start every game last year, she played every game and was overall well rounded with a contributed 83 rebounds, 44 assists and 28 steals. This year, she already has 30 rebounds, the second-highest total on the team, and leads in steals with 14. 

Grace Fincham ’26 dribbles the basketball up the court during the game against Clear Creek Amana Dec. 3. (Maddux Neukirch)
Jack McCaffery '25 defends the ball during the Clear Creek Amana game Dec. 3.
Boys basketball

Senior Jack McCaffery enters this year looking to build off his strong junior season which saw him lead the team in scoring with 16.2 points per game. Over the summer he committed to play college basketball at Butler University for the next four years. A starter since his freshman year, McCaffery is an integral member of the team as they work towards a state championship.

Julian Manson ’26 has constantly seen his role grow since freshman year and is ready to break out as the second-most experienced member of the team. Manson is an efficient scorer who finished in the top five on the team in field goal percent last year with a mark of 52.8%. He is also great off the glass, rebounding both on defense and offense for second-chance points. Watch out for this two-way star this season.

A new face for the Trojans this year is Kingston Swayzer ’27. Swayzer transferred across the river from City where last season he played in 20 games and even started for them. Playing as a freshman in 4A is a rarity, but he managed to carve out a nice role for himself last season. Swayzer is an extremely gifted athlete and will be one of the first players off the bench for the Trojans this season.

Jack McCaffery ’25 defends the ball during the Clear Creek Amana game Dec. 3. (Maddux Neukirch)
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