Caelyn Valandra-Prue finishes basketball career at White River as a state champion
Prue #Prue
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) -Caelyn Valandra-Prue never lacks vocabulary to express herself. “You got to keep them (teammates) up. If they make a big shot then that’s big for the team, not just them individually. I had a goal at the beginning of my freshman year that I was going to be the all-time leading scorer for South Dakota,” White River Senior Caelyn Valandra-Prue says.
Making her a spark plug at White River on the basketball court and the track. “If you really need a bucket she’s an awesome person to have out there. And you can get it to here and she can go attack and make things happen for you. She’s super athletic and just brings the energy. Yeah she has those ‘moments’ for sure, she can kind of sense it I think,” White River Head Coach Jared Bouman says.
A championship sprinter who earned a full ride scholarship to run at USD, Caelyn was on her way to her basketball goals until tearing her ACL and MCL in January of 2020. Though one was denied, she was determined to make the rest of her dreams come true. “Missing almost my whole season last year, it was tough. And coming back this year I knew I had to make a big comeback. I knew I had to prove to everybody, not only myself, but everybody that I’m Caelyn-Valandra and Caelyn-Valandra doesn’t back down to any kind of knee injury, any injury at all,” Caelyn says.
Caelyn came back better than ever this year, finishing 8th on the state’s all-time leading scoring list with 2,536 career points, leading the Tigers to their first ever state title and leaving her in a rare position. “Honestly this whole weekend has been a dream to me. I’ve been dreaming of this since I was a little girl. I’m speechless with words right now! It’s just an awesome feeling!” Valandra-Prue says.
At a loss for words!
Zach Borg, Dakota News Now Sports.
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