Caitlyn McCoy of Leavitt Area High School drives between Arianna Bradeen, left, and Lily Parsons of Mount View High School during the first half of a game last month in Turner. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal
Caitlyn McCoy is a bright sophomore point guard who has been handed the responsibility of calling Leavitt’s offensive plays.
The high honor student eagerly accepted that task despite the pressure that comes with making split-second decisions on the court. Off the court, she is also a force in the classroom and has earned a 3.8 grade point average and is taking advanced courses.
“I am still an underclassman, but even my freshman year last year compared to this year, I’ve kind of settled into playing high school basketball more and it has gotten a little easier being able to handle everything going on at once,” she said. “My adrenaline is always going. Before games, my hands will start shaking and I will be bouncing up and down on my toes. Once tipoff happens, I am fine. I am just playing my game …
“I mean, yeah, I do (feel some pressure), but at the same time I know that my teammates have the trust in me to be in that position. Many of them have told me before that whatever I do they have trust in me with everything because they know how long I have been playing (and the) work I put into (the game).”
McCoy said the strong connections between teammates is imperative to the Hornets’ success.
“Really, just having the bonds and the relationship that I do have with my teammates really makes it a lot easier because even if I am having an off game, they will lift me up and help me through it, and if I am having a good game (and her teammates are having an off game), I can help them through it,” she said.
Basketball is her passion, which developed in the fifth grade. She gave softball a try in elementary school, but during junior high, she figured out putting the ball in the net was her only true calling in sports.
Leavitt Area High School coach Chris Marston said McCoy is averaging 12 points, 2.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game. He added that she is also a strong defensive player, too.
“She is a good anticipator of the basketball off the ball on defense,” he said. “She is pretty good about applying pressure, too, but a lot of times I don’t put her on the other team’s best player just because she is our best four, so (I) like to save her for the best matchups that we run. She gets rebounds fairly well for her size. She is the smallest player on the floor most of the time out there.”
McCoy said one of her greatest assets is her shooting, and she is comfortable taking 3-pointers.
“Every now and then, there is a big-time shot I have to take and I am a little nervous,” McCoy said. “But I know that my coach would not put me in a situation that he knew I couldn’t do or handle.
“I’ve put a lot of my faith into myself. I have put so many years and so much time into perfecting my shot that I will pull the 3 pretty much from anywhere that is realistic at the time, and hopefully it will go in.”
She is proud of the Hornets’ progress as a team and their 5-3 record.
“I think we are No. 7 in our class right now,” McCoy said. “… We’ve already caused a lot of people to look our way, and we’ve got a lot of people’s attention. I think if we just keep playing (well), we will have a really good season. We may not be as physical now, but we are a really quick team.”
ROLE MODEL
Leavitt’s Caitlyn McCoy looks for a teammate to make a pass to while being pressured by Mt. Blue’s Eryn Parlin during a February 2022 game in Turner. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal
Marston said McCoy is not only the team’s ball handler, point guard and playmaker.
“She is a our communicator,” Marston said. “She kind of organizes us on the floor. She kind of does it all. I give her the call to running our offense a lot. She has learned a lot responsibility her second year.”
Marston’s confidence grew as he watched McCoy excel on the court her freshman season.
“She played a lot of minutes last year as a freshman and she will probably would tell you that she was limited a bit, but it is almost like you’ve got to learn to walk before you can run at the varsity level,” Marston said, “and she really made strides and she is very coachable.
“She is very eager to be great, so, like, she adapted … and earned trust, and once you earn trust, you get more freedom.”
Marston that the sophomore isn’t a team captain, but she does fill a leadership role.
“She still leads, anyway, and you can kind of tell the girls look to her for some guidance leadership because she is like the baller in our group, like they know that,” Marston said.
Marston convinced that McCoy has yet to reach her potential.
“I think she is just starting to show what she eventually is capable of,” he said. “I think it is the tip of the iceberg. I think the best is still yet to come.”
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