Although she has been defending Class 4 champion Webb City's leading scorer, it could be said that
Kaitlin Jaeger is nothing more than a role player. As often as Cardinal opponents change, it seems so do her assignments.
Jaeger is zeroing in on 2,000 points for her prep career this season, still she is just as willing to shut down an opposing team's top scorer as she is to putting 30 points on the board herself.
"I want to be a good teammate first because that's good for the team," Jaeger said of her ever-changing role. "My job is to do whatever coach asks of me. If it's to score, then I'll score. But if I'm called on to get others involved in the game or just play shut-down defense, then that's what I'll do.
"I just love playing this game and playing for this team. We've been playing together since the fourth grade. I'm so lucky that I get to play with a great bunch of girls and for a great coach in front of the best fans."
Photo by Dean Backes
Webb City High's Kaitlin Jaeger.
Jaeger became an all star from the onset of her freshman season. As soon as she walked through the gym doors, her 6-foot-1-inch frame landed her a job at center. But her relentless play and athleticism allowed her to reach the top of the depth chart.
One of her earliest fans was Cardinal coach Brad Shorter, who was the head coach at Carl Junction early in her career. As he caught his first glimpse of Jaeger prior to hitting the court against her, Shorter realized that he would have to account for the freshman at all times.
"We were fortunate to beat them. I guess it's something I can always hold over them," Shorter kidded about his 2007 confrontation with Jaeger and the Cardinals, a game he won 66-50. "I could see that she was someone that we were going to have to plan for. She was so athletic and moved so well. She could do some amazing things with the basketball, especially for her size."
Shorter joined forces with the two-time Missouri Basketball Coaches Association first team all-state center in 2008-09, and Webb City has put together a 63-7 mark ever since. Included in that run was a Class 4 state runner-up finish in 2008 and last year's state title.
"After finishing as state runnerup my sophomore season, we knew what to expect last year," Jaeger recalled of Webb City's recent success in postseason play. "Last season was a dream come true and kind of a relief too.
"We just started dogpiling and fist pumping (after the buzzer sounded). I was on the other end of the court pressuring someone at the time, so I was the last one to make it to the pile. There were tears of joy. It was a great moment."
As talented as Jaeger is under the basket, Shorter said he thinks she's even better facing it. The two-time Central Ozarks Conference MVP carried a 19.5-point scoring average during her sophomore and junior seasons collectively.
Jaeger scored 559 points and pulled down 238 rebounds during her inaugural season to earn Southwest Conference MVP honors following the league's final season. Then, as a sophomore, Jaeger ripped the cords for 675 points (21.8 scoring average) and pulled down 311 rebounds before tallying 534 points and 199 rebounds a year ago.
"Obviously she brings athleticism to the floor every night. But she is also a great leader," Shorter said of Jaeger. "Kaitlin is such a competitor. She works hard and is dedicated to doing what she can to help the team. She is relentless.
"Since she is going to play volleyball at Missouri State, Kaitlin could have just said, ‘Oh well,' and moved on. But that's not the way she is. She wants to do well on the basketball court. She wants to be there for her teammates."
If Jaeger and the Cardinals hope to win back-to-back titles, Shorter is going to have to guide Webb City through a rugged Class 5 district schedule this year. In order to prepare his team for the upgrade in play, Shorter has been willing to take them to varying tournaments and shootouts.
Last December, the Cardinals edged Midwest City (Okla.) 65-62 in overtime at the KTXR Lady Classic in Springfield. The Bombers finished the 2009-10 season with a 25-2 record and claimed the Oklahoma Class 6A state championship, giving them two straight titles.
Jaeger drew a couple of fouls in the first quarter of that contest and scored five points early on, allowing the Cardinals to take a 10-5 lead in the opening quarter. In the fourth quarter, she scored on a Hailey Roderique assist with 1:26 remaining to put Webb City up 62-59.
Jaeger went to the charity stripe seconds later and secured the win with a pair of free throws, putting the Cardinals up by the final margin. Jaeger was 8-for-11 from the free throw line and scored 18 points in the win.
Last weekend, Jaeger and the Cardinals stayed with Wichita Heights for a half before falling to the Kansas Class 6A top-ranked Falcons 81-61 at the HyVee Shootout at Avila University in Kansas City. Jaeger scored 18 points in the opening half before finishing the game with a shootout-high 32 points.
The shootout is four days of hoops border battles, pitting a high school team from Missouri against a counterpart from Kansas. There were 14 boys games and seven girls contests beginning last Wednesday and running through Saturday.
"That was pretty cool," Jaeger said of her first experience at the shootout. "Seeing all of the college coaches there and then playing against a team as good as Wichita Heights was amazing. Playing against them gave us big game experience and should only help us down the road."
Shorter was pleased with Jaeger's first half play inside against the Falcons, and he had hoped to keep that going in the second half. But the Falcons displayed their balance, quickness and athleticism in the second half and pulled away.
"We never really played a team like that," Jaeger said of battling Kansas' defending Class 6A runner-up. "We created our schedule with high caliber teams to prepare us for later in the season. We feel we have to play the best now in order to have a chance later."
Jaeger is averaging 20 points a game through eight games this season on 65 of 92 (70.7 percent) shooting from the field and 30 of 46 (65.2 percent) accuracy from the free throw line. She has also dished out a couple of assists per game, blocks 3.6 shots and gathers in 6.6 rebounds and 3.9 steals per outing.