In his first year, Coach Dante Sarmiento made the bold choice of adding one freshman to the team, current junior Sophia Nourafshan, and his move paid off. “Being the only freshman on the Varsity Girls’ Basketball team was definitely a nerve-racking experience, but I had such amazing people surrounding me that it just felt like one big family and I felt so included and welcomed,” she said.
Since Coach Dante has been coaching Milken Varsity Girls’ Basketball, the team has consisted of majority upperclassmen, until now. Last year there were no freshmen on the team and this year there are currently six freshmen on the team, some of whom are in the starting five.
After seeing the positive impact the varsity team had on Nourafshan, Coach Dante knew that it was time to continue to scout out the talent that the incoming freshmen had to offer “I knew there were gonna be a few freshmen on the team, but adding six really came when I saw them in the gym and realized that there was really young talent,” he said.
Coach Dante explained that there were many factors that came into play when he was deciding how many players should be added to the team. When word came out that current juniors who were previously on the JV team were no longer interested in playing on a Milken Basketball team due to all sorts of reasons, Sarmiento took it upon himself to find the talent that could fill those missing spots: “I saw all the openings and a lot of the JV girls from the previous year decided not to play again so it just created an opportunity for me to want to go young.”
One of the primary motivations for including the six freshmen on the team was the belief that they could enhance their skills at a higher level of competition. However, the coach faced some challenges in managing their relative immaturity. It’s not only a question of skill; young players rarely make it onto a varsity squad because they don’t have the experience or understanding of how to manage stress during a game: “The biggest challenge has been the lack of maturity. Maturity means lack of experience in playing, lack of experience in being under stressful situations, and the maturity needed to handle that properly. To stay calm and know when to get excited, when to execute, and to know when to be disciplined. And the whole process of just learning how to prepare for a game,” said Coach Dante.
An underclassman on the team who has chosen to remain anonymous shared that her biggest challenge was gaining the same amount of respect from other players and coaches that those who had previously been on the team had: “I don’t feel like I have the same respect as the upperclassmen on the team. I feel like occasionally the upperclassmen definitely tend to get more credit.”
Sophia Nourafshan ’25 found that the most challenging task she had endured this year as a team member was finding her place on the court. She used to be a dependable starter, but now she has to compete with freshmen to earn time on the court. She believes that every freshman should be given the opportunity to play, and she finds it really inspiring to know that she has friendly competition that motivates her to get better. “A bad part about being on the team is because there are so many new people with so much skill it kind of gives me a little less hope for my ability to play because they are all so good and I thought that I would be one of the top players this year,” she said.
Although it can be challenging to manage the age difference, the team reported that this was the year that they felt the closest to one another. These girls work hard to form bonds with one another on and off the court. Even though she isn’t playing as much during games, sophomore Kiley Cohen talked about her great experiences with the team and how she constantly felt her teammates’ love and support: “I have close relationships with people from freshman to senior year so I feel there isn’t a disconnect between each year. I didn’t feel any extra comfort knowing that I was not going to be the youngest on the team because I feel comfortable with everyone on the team.” She continued to talk about all the incredible bonding experiences the team had created for themselves.
This team understood that in order to succeed and communicate on the court, they would have to connect with each other in their free time. “The best part of being on the team is bonding as a team. I went to an escape room with a few girls on the team and that was really fun. We have had a couple of team lunches and breakfasts and that was really fun too,” said Kiley Cohen 26′. Almost every single girl that was interviewed expressed how welcoming the team has been. Freshman Ivy Gabizadeh shared that there was an instant “click” with everyone on the team. Nourafshan added that one of her favorite parts of being on the team with underclassmen was that she got the opportunity to be a leader: “The best part of being on the team this year is that I feel a lot closer to the team this year and now that I am one of the oldest I kind of have the opportunity to be a leader.”
The team is currently on its way to playoffs, and this is the first year since Coach Dante has been the head coach that the team made playoffs by being the top three in their league. Coach Dante has high hopes for the next few years of this team: “My hope for the future, for next year is to keep improving so we can possibly compete for a league title, and then our ultimate goal is always winning CIF and making a run at state.”