Girls from six different schools were represented at Trinity Lutheran’s basketball camp this past week.

While each player came in with a different ability level, every camper focused on perfecting the basics.

“We were consistent with the fundamentals each day with passing, shooting, dribbling and defense,” Trinity varsity coach and camp director Mike Lang said. “You need to start them young with the fundamentals. You see a lot of girls in the fifth and sixth grades that haven’t’ mastered the fundamentals. The earlier we start them, the better. They’ve done a great job, and it has been a lot of fun. You see improvement in all of them.”

The camp ran Monday through Thursday with the sessions lasting two hours each.

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“One good thing we started this week off with was not only dribbling with right hand and left hand but teaching them how to dribble with two balls,” Lang said. “By the end of the week, every single one of them could dribble two balls consistently. It shows that if you put in a little time each day, you can pick it up really quick.”

Immanuel Lutheran sixth-grader Emma Braman said she learned a lot from the camp.

“I wanted to work on my skills,” she said. “I’ve been playing since kindergarten. I learned a lot. I worked on my shooting and dribbling a lot. I’m faster now.”

Members of Trinity’s high school team helped out with the camp. Lang said it’s important for the high school players to give back and work with the youth.

“It teaches them responsibility and leadership,” Lang said. “Those girls are role models.”

St. John’s Sauers fourth-grader Zoey Dulaney liked working with the older kids and improving.

“It was really cool (working with the older kids). They taught us a lot,” she said. “I thought it would be kind of cool to learn about my shooting and dribbling. I’ve learned a lot. My favorite part is whenever we learn something new and we do the contests.”

Overall, Lang felt the camp was a success.

“It went well. They came in, worked hard and had fun,” he said. “We say that if they went home with a smile on their face at the end of the day, then we knew we had a good day.”