BY DAVE LINK
Catholic senior Sydney Mains is taking a break from competitive basketball before heading to Florida Atlantic University to start her college career in early June.
While working out mostly on her own, Mains has found a newfound love on the court of late.
She’s helping coach her younger sister London and her third-grade team, whose head coaches are Catholic girls’ coach Travis Mains and his wife/assistant Missey Mains, parents of Sydney and London.
SmartBank is the proud sponsor of the 2023-24 All-5Star Preps Basketball Awards. Hit their logo above and see what separates SmartBank above the competition.
“I’m enjoying it so much, being around these little kids,” Sydney said. “They treat me like a superstar, so it’s like the best thing to come in and get hugs from one of these little kids, and they look up to me. It’s such an awesome feeling.”
Some of them likely saw Sydney’s heroics during her four years at Catholic, leading the Lady Irish to Division II-AA state championship games in three of her four years and to back-to-back state titles the past two seasons.
Mains, a combination guard/wing, was the 2024 Division II-AA Miss Basketball winner, repeated as MVP of state tournament, and is the two-time 5Star Preps Player of the Year. She was the 5Star Preps Underclassman of the Year as a freshman and sophomore.
Unlike her previous seasons after high school ball, she’s not playing AAU travel ball this year.
“I still work out with my teammates some days just to be around them,” Mains said. “It’s been a nice break, but I’m ready to start playing again, that’s for sure.”
Travis Mains said Sydney needed the break after playing year around for many years.
She played much of this past season with a thumb injury on her right shooting hand – which required a heavy bandage/brace — and missed the first half of her junior season rehabbing from a knee injury.
“Her body’s kind of chilling and resting,” Travis said, “and she’s working out during the week.”
Mains, 5-foot-11, is being recruited by Florida Atlantic to play both point guard and shooting guard, and possibly some small forward. She was an all-court player for Catholic and one of its top defenders.
Travis said his daughter is working on her ballhandling, shooting, and athleticism in preparation for FAU.
“She’ll play a role (at FAU) like she did when she played for that (AAU) team (the Alabama Southern Stars) where she was primarily doing a lot of shooting and making plays,” Travis said. “It will be fun for her.”
BIG NUMBERS, STATE TITLES
This past season, Mains averaged 18.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 2.5 steals. She shot 39 percent from 3-point range.
And she did it with a bum thumb.
“It changed the whole way I dribbled, the way I shot, because I couldn’t use my thumb the same way I did,” she said. “I couldn’t really move it. It was kind of stuck in one position, so I didn’t have control of the ball like I used to. I wasn’t shooting the best, but I still had to shoot good shots if I was open.”
Mains said she and her teammates began the 2023-24 season focused on repeating as state champions.
No matter what it took.
“We worked so hard,” Mains said. “As soon we got off of our (2023) championship, we really didn’t stop. We were still working in the weight room, playing in the open gym, and stuff like that.
“We obviously knew the opportunity would be there and as long as we worked hard, whatever was going to happen was going to happen, and we won’t have any regrets, so it ended up working out for the best.”
For her career, Mains averaged 19.1 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.8 steals. She finished with 2,325 career points and 356 3-pointers, making 40 percent from 3-point range for her career.
Mains wasn’t just dealing with injuries during her junior and senior seasons; she was the focal point of opposing defenses.
“Those two years were just a lot of faith and a lot of preparation, doing what she could control,” Travis Mains said. “She didn’t have a lot of time to train extra. She was just recuperating from injuries, it seemed like to me.”
LOOKING BACK, MOVING FORWARD
The Mains family moved from the Johnson City area to Knoxville in the summer of 2020 after Travis resigned as Daniel Boone’s girls coach to take the same position at Catholic with Missey as an assistant.
Instead of starting high school in familiar surroundings, Sydney found herself in Knoxville playing with new teammates.
“It was scary at first because I didn’t know a single person down here,” she said, “but coming in, it was during COVID, so we would have workouts and we would all have to wear masks.
“But we started early in the summer, so it kind of gave me time to build those friendships (with teammates), not during school, so when school started, I was already friends with the girls, and they were all just so welcoming, and the staff was so welcoming, so it was never real uncomfortable throughout the whole time.”
Four years later, the Mains’ family couldn’t be happier with the move.
“It was good,” Travis said, “the school part, and the faith-based school was huge for (Sydney’s) development as a person, and just to be here to help her and guide her, too, and the opportunities for our youngest daughter also. It’s been good for us.”
Sydney leaves June 4 for FAU – located in Boca Raton, Fla. – and begins taking summer school classes and working out with the team for six weeks.
She will then return to Knoxville for about three weeks before leaving for FAU again the second week of August.
As for expectations, Sydney doesn’t have anything specific right now.
“I just know that if I work hard and I do the best that I can every single day, I could have the opportunity to play,” she said. “I know they haven’t really recruited any other shooters, so it depends on how hard I work. I’m excited about the opportunity, that’s for sure.”
Her parents, meanwhile, will continue coaching the Catholic girls, watch Sydney’s games on live stream, and get to Florida when they can to watch her play.
And they’ll be coaching up London at the same time.
“She’s just getting started,” Travis said, “so we’re pouring into her like we did Sydney.”
PAST 5SP GIRLS PLAYERS OF THE YEAR
2018-19: Jada Guinn (Oak Ridge)
2019-20: Denae Fritz (Maryville)
2020-21: Denae Fritz (Maryville)
2021-22: Jennifer Sullivan (Bearden)
2022-23: Sydney Mains (Catholic)
2023-24: Sydney Mains (Catholic)