Early this past Friday morning, athletic director Clark Udell stood beside the doorway to the lecture hall, debriefing the girls basketball program on why he called for a meeting on such short notice.

Out of sight in the hallway stood the new face of the lady Rangers. Udell spoke to the wide eyed players about the coach, and the room, once filled with the chatter of conversation, now grew silent. The girls awaited the announcement of the name of their new leader.

“She is someone who has been fired up and passionate about our girls basketball program at Forest Hills Central for a very long time,” Udell said. “She was our starting point guard for four years and continued playing at Davenport after that. She is a Ranger through and through and we’re really excited to have that passion, drive, and investment in our program. Coach, it’s all yours.”

In through the doorway came Kristina Prins, the new face of the lady Rangers.

Prins was an outstanding athlete in her time at FHC, racking up eleven varsity letters while playing basketball, volleyball, and soccer. In her brief talk with the team, she was already clicking with some of the players. Prins, at only twenty six years old, is very young and was recently married  She is currently on her honeymoon.

Prins is eager to get started, and can’t wait to get to know the players.

“The girls seem awesome,” Prins said,  “and I’m just excited to get going.”

Udell is just as eager to have her back at FHC. He knows what kind of a competitor Prinz is and praised her on how she looks at the bigger picture outside of athletics.

“She’s competitive,” Udell said.  “I think it’s important that our coaches model a healthy competitiveness to our athletes. She is at a point [in her life] where she will be a good role model to our athletes. She understands that when it’s time to play, it’s time to play. But outside of the competition and practice, who our athletes are becoming as people is important.”

Udell also talked about how her involvement in FHC athletics helps to make her transition into a bigger role much easier.

“The transition of her to the green and white is like she’s never left,” Udell said. “Now, the transition of her becoming a first-year head basketball coach is definitely there. She has a lot of relationships with other varsity coaches in our program and she knows the lay of the land around FHC.”

Prinz is stepping into a young program with only two seniors heading into the season: Paula Shields and Maddy Smith. Backed by a strong junior class, the duo plans to vamp up their roles on the team this year and lead the charge against a tough conference. The two senior lady rangers recognize that having such a young team will prove to be exciting and challenging for Prins.

“When I started on varsity, I was used to having that guidance from the older players and being able to learn as I go,” Smith said. “Now that there is a new coach, she will definitely have to teach the younger kids a little bit more. We kinda have to step up more and help her out to get acclimated.”

Having lots of young talent on a team is not always a bad thing. Sophomore Claire Baguley is eager to get started and have a new face at the helm for this season.

“I think it’ll be good to have a young coach,” Claire said. “I think she will fit into our program really well, and get along with the team and we’ll have a lot of fun.”

A returning junior is Emma Yoder, a player who has witnessed the many different changes to the program including the loss of many seniors from last year and the new coach.

“I’m looking forward to the season,” Emma said. “I think she’s going to be a hard but really fun coach. Our two seniors are really stepping up, and our juniors are helping out a lot. The players from last year have started to take the lead, even if they’re not seniors.”

 Prins’s final words before she left on Friday captured her theme for this season perfectly:

“This is a program that I’m really excited for, a bunch of girls that I really respect, and a school that I adore.”