For senior athletes at MSHS, this year is their last one. One such athlete is Caileen Sienknecht (12). Sienknecht is a basketball and soccer player, a leader and a stellar student. She is now going through her last season of high school sports. “It’s really sad because everything is going to be over soon, but we still have to push as hard as we can to win and play as many games as we can,” Sienknecht said.

Currently, as it is basketball season, that is the sport most of her focus is in. “The expectations weren’t high for this really young team,” she said. “But the younger players grew so much and I’m so proud of all the effort that they are putting in.”

Sienknecht is going to continue her sports career at Western Colorado University. “I still don’t know if I’m going to play either basketball or soccer,” Sienknecht said. “I am talking to both of their coaches and it’s a really hard decision for me because I love both these sports so much.”

Sienknecht is a really motivated athlete and a hard worker. She has two people that she looks up to and who motivate her to push herself as much as she can: her brother Cole Sienknecht and her Coach Amelia Schofield. “Coach Amy always pushes me to be better, motivates me and makes me mad when I need to be,” Sienknecht said. “My brother sets really good examples for me and for what I want to do with my life.”

Sienknecht is a natural leader; she sets examples for the younger players and is always working as hard as she can. She really influenced the younger players in the basketball team, such as Alexia Vigil (9). “She pushed me harder than anyone else on the team and I really look up to her because I think we are very similar,” Vigil said. “She doesn’t make me feel like a freshman, she just makes me feel like an important part of the team.” Sienknecht is not just a skilled player, she is a really inspiring person too.

“Next year we are not only going to miss the intensity that [Sienknecht] brings to practice every day or how fun it is to play with her, but how much she cares about people and the team,” Schofield said.