LAKEVILLE— Sneakers squealed, balls bounced and teammates chattered excitedly about tactics, while Kanye West’s hip hop classic “Heartless” blared in the background.

Those sounds filled the air of Apponequet’s gymnasium as the Lakers girls’ basketball team practiced on Monday, Dec. 9, just days before the first game of the year.

The beginning of the season is special for Trevor Gagnier, who said that as the Laker’s head coach, he loves “teaching [and] being in the gym,” and that, “kids are always excited for that first week.”

This year in particularly, his players were anxious to get back on the court after the team lost in the Round of 16 in the state tournament last season. “There was kind of a bad taste from last year,” he said.

Both coach and players reiterated their hopes for the 2024-2025 season: to win the conference championship and make it as far, if not farther, in the playoffs then they did last year.

“We have high expectations here,” Gagnier noted.

On the team are a lot of veteran players, he said, and the group has many strengths. “We can defend, we can shoot, teams can’t press us because [of] our guard play,” he said.

A team with good guard play has the skill to keep control of the ball when being pressured by the opponent to give up possession, he explained. 

The team also has good basketball IQ, he said, meaning athletes know how to play the game instinctively and can adapt.

Beyond their athletic ability, the girls also have an incredible bond on and off the court. 

“I love the team; we do everything together. We all want to win, [and] our mindset is top tier,” said Senior Captain Cynthia Morales

Some have been playing together since the fourth grade. The bond they have as a team makes them more supportive of each other on the court, says Junior Shooting Guard Hannah Kuriscak.

“Sometimes when teams aren’t close, they’ll yell each other [on the court]. We try our best to stray away from that,” said Kuriscak. “We really try to pick each other up. If [someone] misses a shot, [we] say ‘Hey, you’ve got the next one.’ ”

At its core, the Lakers varsity basketball team is a group of girls passionate about the sport.

CC Levrault is convinced that basketball is “one of the most fun sports in the world.” She has grown up playing basketball in her backyard with her brother Will Levrault, who is a senior captain on the boys varsity team. One of the elements she loves most about the game is the fast pace, she said.

That passion and strong bond will be key as the Lakers take on a more competitive game schedule this year.

“If we’re healthy and we play the right way, we’ll have the same opportunity as last year,” said Gagnier, who hopes that if his team makes it to the playoffs, they will have more home games than last year.

In his pre-game locker room talks, Gagnier said he planned to hammer one point home. “We want to be the aggressor,” he said.

As of Monday, Dec.30 team’s record was 4 wins and two losses.

At the end of the year season, the Lakers will say goodbye to 5 seniors: Morales, Addison Taylor, Ashlynn McDonnell, Jayleigh Howarth and Abigail Bradley.