Xavier’s Kaitlyn Hamlett enjoying freshman basketball

CEDAR RAPIDS - Xavier freshman guard Kaitlyn Hamlett has been playing basketball for many years.

Starting in second grade, Hamlett joined the Cedar Rapids Bulldogs in fourth grade and played up through here eighth grade year before starting high school.

Her eighth-grade coach with the Bulldogs also is her freshman coach at Xavier.

Jim Potts has been coaching for 10 years and, although he coaches many age levels with the Bulldogs, he tries to get the eighth grader's prepared for their high school careers.

'It's actually good to have the girls as eighth-graders then again as freshman because then they know what they are doing when they come, and they know the system,” he said. 'It's a lot easier to coach them as they come in.”

Potts said coaching these girls has an added bonus.

'Coaching these girls kind of keeps me young and reminds me what it is like to be in high school sometimes,” Potts said. 'Especially with girls, they are always laughing, and they are a lot of fun.”

Hamlett, for one, likes the two-year connection.

'I like having him more than one year because he knows my strengths and weaknesses and he knows how to push me,” she said. 'He is also a great coach. He pushes everyone on the team to be the best that they can be.”

Basketball has played a role in most of Hamlett's life. She started at the YMCA and plans on improving her skills throughout high school, focusing on ball-handling and her outside shot.