Cavegirl Basketball Kids' Camp Coming Up

By Misty Cryer

Registration is now underway for the Cavegirl Basketball Camp. The camp will be June 17-19 at Alta Vista, 301 Alta Vista St., from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Cavegirl coaches and players have a lot of fun things lined out for the campers, including drills, contests, games, and awards.

"It's going to be for kids entering first through ninth grade," said Matt Enloe, Head Coach of Carlsbad Cavegirl Basketball.

"We have a bunch of skills and drills. We focus on the fundamentals for the younger ones—lots of dribbling, shooting, passing," said Coach Enloe. He said they work on individual skills while working toward competitions.

"At the end of the third day, they'll compete for ribbons," said Enloe. Ribbons are awarded for first, second, and third place in a variety of competitions.

Competitions mentioned as examples include knockout, buzzer-beater, and free throws. For the older ones, he said, they will play 4-on-4 tournaments for ribbons. "We also give out Camper of the Week with a signed jersey from all the varsity girls," he said.

"All of our coaches will be there helping, and our high school girls will be there assisting as well," said Enloe.

"I've got three age groups going," he said, adding that the breakdown is grades one through four, grades five and six, and grades seven through nine. He explained that the high school players—called counselors—will be assigned to a group, serve as team leads, and help the campers, with the coaches overseeing everything.

"This is my fifth year doing it. I know a lot of the young ones love doing it," said Enloe. He said he sees kids out in the community all the time, and they ask him when the kids' camp will be again.

"It's a way to give back to the community, to get those girls involved with basketball. Hopefully, they love it and develop some skills and drills by the end and just have fun. That's what it's all about—the kids having fun and enjoying basketball," he said, adding that for many campers, it is their first time ever playing basketball.

The camp provides the opportunity for kids to be introduced to the sport of basketball, get them involved, and get the high school kids involved. "It's a lot of fun, and it's good for the community and all the girls," said Enloe.

Each camper gets a camp T-shirt, a basketball, and free lunches every day, he said, adding that the balls and shirts are sponsored with lunch provided through the Summer Lunch Program.

"On the last day, the parents can come and watch their kids compete," said Enloe.

Registration for the Cavegirl Basketball Camp can be completed online at https://www.cavegirlbasketball.com. The registration fee is $75 per participant. Enloe said he thinks the cutoff is 100 campers due to the number of basketballs and t-shirts available. At press time, the camp was approximately 65% full.