Fair Grove Middle School is kicking off winter sports with basketball, while the cheerleading team continues throughout the season.
The middle school boys basketball team will be led by head coach Ryan Highstreet. Highstreet mentioned that tryouts were held November 10th and 11th, while practices will be held in the mornings before school at 6am.
Highstreet mentioned that this year, the 8th grade boys team is looking forward to avenging their loss in last year’s championship game.
The first basketball game for the boys is on December 12th, 2025 in Clever.Â
Middle school girls basketball also takes place during the winter time. Girls head coach Carrie Green said, “We work hard everyday with three goals for middle school basketball: 1) to improve our fundamentals and learn the game 2) to prepare for high school basketball 3) to have fun competing.”
Green stated a few trials that she and the team would face this season. “Overall, our numbers are lower than usual. Our 8th grade has a lot of experience playing, while our 7th graders are new to the game.” She continued, “It’s such a fast-paced game full of transitions so it takes time to learn that and be ready to compete.”
This year Green is working to help them become a better team than before. She explained,“For 8th grade, we want to be stronger and play more physically. We want to move the ball quickly and improve our team defense and rebounding.” She continued, “For 7th grade, we want to learn the game and be more aggressive.”
Green mentioned her love of coaching basketball, she shared, “These girls are so much fun to work with. I’ve been around the game of basketball my whole life and there’s nothing I love more than teaching young players the game.” She continued, “They work so well together and are learning to be leaders and competitors on the court.”Â
Basketball isn’t the only thing going on this winter. Middle school cheerleading goes on all year and their first game they cheered was in September. Lindsay Dunning is the head middle school cheer coach. She mentioned, “I always look forward to seeing the girls improve over the course of the season, and become more comfortable in front of the crowds.”
Dunning shared that tryouts were held at the end of last year with around 30 middle school girls showing up. She explained, “We had a panel of judges who scored each girl on things like technique, jumps, and routine execution.”
Kayla Holt, the middle school assistant cheerleading coach, expressed the joy she experiences when planning halftime routines and working with the girls. She shared, “Every year I look forward to getting to know the cheerleaders and developing not only cheer skills, but leadership skills on and off the court.”
