It was a bitter-sweet moment a couple weeks ago for Trinity head basketball coach Mike Lang and senior Sydney Jaynes. The two both participated in the HBCA All-Star game at Barr Reeves with Lang being one of the four coaches selected and Jaynes being one of the players.
It marked the final time the two would share the court as player and coach. For Jaynes, it was fun to see Lang outside a Trinity setting, coaching other players that he is unfamiliar with.
“It was a great day,” Lang said. “It was pretty cool getting to coach Syd in the game, especially being it the last game I get to coach her in.”
Their team didn’t win the game, losing 95-82, but Lang got to see Jaynes do what she’s been doing for four years at Trinity: get buckets.
Jaynes led her team in scoring with 23 points.
“It was safe to say I was hitting my shots that game,” Jaynes said. “I was hitting a lot of midrange jump shots. There were a lot of bigs on our team, so people were passing out to me and I hit a lot of midrange jump shots, and that was awesome.”
Another cool moment during the game was that Jaynes got to share the court with her best friend since kindergarten, Katherine Benter, who played at Brownstown Central and was co-player of the year with Jaynes last season.
“That was super cool,” Jaynes said on playing with Benter.
The HBCA All-Star game was the first of many for Jaynes heading into this spring and summer. This past weekend, Jaynes competed in the Hoosier Reunion All-Star game, based off the movie “Hoosiers.”
Jaynes was able to don the yellow and red hickory jerseys while playing.
“It was super cool,” Jaynes said. “My whole team was all the Indiana All-Stars, and I just thought it was so cool to play with those girls before the all-star game.”
As Jaynes alluded to, she was also selected as a member of the girls Indiana All-Star team this summer. The Indiana All-Star games against Kentucky will be played on June 11 (in Kentucky) and June 12 (at Southport Fieldhouse). They’ll also compete against the Indiana Junior All-Stars on June 9 at a site to be announced later.
Jaynes wasn’t selected as a junior all-star after her junior season, so she was very pleased to be recognized as an all-star after her final prep season.
”I have no words for how like cool it is, it’s so surreal,” Jaynes said. “I’ve always had dreams of being on an Indiana All-Star team, and now that’s it has come true, it doesn’t feel real. I’m just super excited to get to play with all those amazing players.”
After Jaynes competes in those games in June, she’ll then turn her focus onto the next chapter of her basketball career. She reports to Butler for summer workouts on June 27.
The all-time leading scorer in Trinity girls basketball history has been waiting awhile to step foot into Hinkle Fieldhouse and begin her new career.
”I am so excited,” Jaynes said. “I feel like I’ve been ready since the end of the Trinity basketball season and just move forward and play with my new teammates. All of them are so amazing.”
Jaynes admits, though basketball in Indiana is a great thing to be a part of, she didn’t necessarily seek out staying in her home state for college. Despite her dad nudging her to stay a little closer to home so it’s easier to attend games, Jaynes just felt like Butler was the best fit for her.
As a Bulldog, Jaynes expects to serve as a stretch four, doing work in the post while also having the ability to step out to the perimeter if needed.
”Part of her development was not just how we are going to benefit from her in high school, but how can we get her ready to play at the next level?” said Lang, who admits he took a lot of slack for playing Jaynes on the perimeter early in her career. “She really worked hard on her versatility. She can shoot three’s, and she’s a phenomenal passer. One of the best post-passers I’ve ever seen.”
Jaynes also credits Lang and the Trinity coaching staff for allowing her the freedom to grow in multiple areas during her time as a Cougar. Jaynes still comes to some Trinity workouts now to stay in shape before she heads to Butler, and Lang said that has been a great role model for the players still on the team.
The whole Trinity team plans to be in attendance to see Jaynes play on the Indiana All-Star team, encompassing the family mentality that is built into the program and why Jaynes relished her time on the team as she moves toward the next step in her journey.
”It’s been easy to coach her,” Lang said. “On top of being a good player, she’s been an even better person.”