The young lady currently poised to be her class valedictorian in the spring doesn’t lack material for a good speech.
Edinburgh senior Kyah Streeval has experienced adversity, fought through it and is understandably excited for the start of the upcoming basketball season.
The Lancers’ point guard sustained an ACL injury to her left knee late in the second game of the 2022-23 season, a 58-16 home victory over Central Christian.
The time and rehabilitation required for Streeval to return to some sense of normalcy physically forced her to miss the remainder of the basketball season, and all of softball season — she’d been the Lancers’ starting catcher since her freshman year.
“I was going down the court for a fast break. I tried to jump stop, my ankle rolled, and my left knee just didn’t go the right way,” Streeval recalled. “It was definitely rough. Not just for basketball, but for missing softball season, too. But I tried to stay involved and help out as much as possible.”
A Lancers team short both in experience and numbers went on to finish 6-18 in Amy Macy’s 10th and final season as coach.
Streeval’s return is a major plus as former assistant Dennis Smith begins his first season in charge.
“If Kyah has anything she can bring to the team, it’s leadership. She’s a natural born leader,” Smith said. “I think it comes from the way she was brought up. People look to Kyah for leadership.
“When she’s out there running a drill and leading, a lot of the other girls are picking up the pace, too.”
All of Streeval’s classmates are looking up at her 4.4 grade-point average, but the senior’s willingness to be a difference maker goes well beyond smarts.
After undergoing surgery to repair her knee prior just before last Thanksgiving, Streeval could have distanced herself from hoops while rehabbing.
Even when forced to use crutches and wear a cast, Streeval opted for the opposite approach. She continued to be a mentor to younger teammates such as her sister Kenna, now a sophomore guard, and soph Bella Turner.
Last year, I kind of tried to immerse myself into helping my sister and Bella to step into that (point guard) role,” Kyah Streeval said. “It was rough not being able to get out there, but it kind of makes this season more valuable to me.”
Almost at 100% physically, Streeval played volleyball this past season, finishing with 326 digs and 777 assists as the Lancers’ starting setter.
She was the hub of the offense then, and will be again soon.
SCOUTING THE LANCERS
Coach: Dennis Smith
Last season: 6-18, lost to Morristown in first round of Class A sectional
Key returnees: Alix Streeval and Kyah Streeval, seniors; Shyleigh Gobel, junior; Lillie Goff, Kenna Streeval and Bella Turner, sophomores
Top newcomers: Mia Dodson, junior; Kenzie Purvis, freshman
Outlook: Smith, an assistant girls coach the past two seasons and a boys assistant from 2017-19, succeeds Amy Macy, who ran the program for a decade. Whether the Lancers can post their first winning season since Macy’s 2019-20 squad went 17-6 remains to be seen, though Smith looks forward to the chance to do so.
“I’m very excited about it, and to see if we can get numbers. I’m actually pretty excited about building this,” Smith said. “This group likes to compete. Overall, it’s just about trying to get the kids to compete as hard as they can.”
Sophomore Kenna Streeval is back after averaging 7.4 points and 2.8 rebounds in her varsity debut season. Older sister Kyah, a senior, scored 12 points in last season’s opener and sustained a season-ending ACL injury in the fourth quarter of the second outing. Dodson, who chose not to play last season, is back. She participated in eight games as a freshman.
Edinburgh will have to find a way to be more of a factor offensively. The Lancers averaged only 29.6 points per game last winter, their lowest norm since way back in 2001-02 (29.2).
