The week's Macedon Ranges Guardian Sport Star of the week is 11-year-old Miranda Jones of Kyneton. The grade five Kyneton Primary School student is making giant strides as one of the rising young guns in the sport of basketball.
Miranda is an enthusiastic member of the Kyneton Basketball Association. She is an emerging young gun who possesses great speed, agility and a little bit of extra height to give her an edge over her opponents. She plays in a variety of positions and is a great offensive and defensive rebounder. She started playing basketball three years ago and loves any chance that she has to go out and shoot some hoops. She started playing thanks to her dad who played a lot of basketball while growing up and she naturally took the game on through his great love of the sport.
"She took to it straight away," proud dad Rob said, "she was around very enthusiastic people."
Miranda started her basketball journey when her family lived in Northcote. She joined a development program in Collingwood and that gave her the skills to get her going in domestic competitions. Her family moved up to Kyneton two years ago and she slotted in comfortably in the exciting environment of the Kyneton Basketball Association. Last year she played in the Under 12s and Under 14s at domestic level. Basketballers were encouraged to get as much court time as possible to assist them with the confidence and team building to play representative matches.
Miranda has had a stellar run in recent seasons. She won the Most Valuable Player award in the Under 12 Girls premiership team that competed in Ballarat over the Queen's Birthday weekend. She was a clear stand-out across the tournament and deserved her award in a very strong team that featured many outstanding stars. She was a valuable member of the team that won the premiership in Traralgon earlier this year. The team is coached by Alan Simmins and has worked wonders for Miranda and the team. The squad was on the receiving end of some heavy losses 12 months ago and they have since grown to be one of the most feared teams in the state. Alan has implemented a terrific defensive game plan that has made them very hard to score against. Miranda has learned lots of valuable tips from him as coach in order to be a better team player and sports person.
"He has been a good influence on Miranda," Rob said.
Outside her love of basketball, Miranda has played tennis in Kyneton for the last 12 months. She is coached by Marcus Wills who has been terrific in her development of skills as a tennis player. She loves being in the outdoors and has a great group of friends.
"She is pretty fun, has good character, lots of energy and looks out for people," Rob said.
Miranda would love a career in sport but she also has a great love of animals and nature that might encourage her to follow a career path in nature.
For being featured as our Macedon Ranges Guardian Sports Star of the week, Miranda wins a $40 gift voucher to Amped Skate n Surf in Kyneton and may call in to our Market Street in Kyneton to collect his prize. If you would like to nominate any youngster doing their best in their chosen sport, contact our sports desk by calling 5422 1488 or email - sport@elliottmidnews.com.au
The award seeks to recognise sporting achievements and is as much as for those just doing their best as it is for those who reach great heights.
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