Kaci Pace woke up on February 12, game day, with the thought “you don’t always have to be the best player, but you always have to be the best teammate,” and that mindset has allowed Kaci to become such a valuable part of the Caldwell Girl’s Basketball Team. Caldwell’s first loss of the season is only two days old, and tonight brings the immediate chance to respond against West Morris Central. Kaci knows the team’s bounce-back won’t come without her leadership and support, so she prepares herself from the very start of the day. Her focus doesn’t jump straight to the opponent or the stakes, it settles first on preparation and on energy. She already knows she’ll need it to carry her through a full academic load, pregame preparation, and four quarters on the court. So from the start of the day, she’s planning around one constant: a big lunch. On game days, she always eats more than usual so she can sustain energy all the way through tipoff.
Before she even leaves for school, another ritual arrives. A motivational video from her dad. Every game day, without fail. Sometimes it’s highlights, sometimes speeches, sometimes reminders about confidence and belief. She watches it to center herself before the day begins. The message is always the same underneath: trust who you are as a player.
At James Caldwell High School, the academic day is packed. AP Literature, AP Economics, AP Environmental Science, Pre-Calculus, Spanish.
The schedule is demanding from the first period on, but it keeps her focused. The workload fills the hours and keeps her mind engaged until basketball takes over later. For Kaci, being busy academically makes her more motivated athletically. School and basketball don’t compete, they balance each other. Even while moving between classes, game day stays in her head. She’s not thinking about scoring or stats. She’s thinking about improvement and team impact. What can I do better as a player? What can I do better as a teammate? That second question matters most to her. Lunch is the day’s first major checkpoint. 
While many athletes eat lightly before games, Kaci does the opposite. She makes sure she has a substantial meal because she knows she’ll need steady energy later. It’s preparation as much as practice. After eating, she turns to film study, watching clips on Hudl, a sports video analysis and data platform. She studies possessions, positioning, and team flow, looking for ways she can support better spacing, rebounding, and defensive effort.
After school, the physical preparation continues with something that has become part of her routine this season: knee care. 
An injury early in the year forced her to miss the first weeks of preseason. While teammates practiced, she was in rehab. Now back in full participation, she still goes to Iron Physical Therapy before or after practices and games to keep the knee strong and stable. It’s maintenance, prevention, and reassurance all at once. Being hurt once changed how she approaches every game she gets to play.
By the time she reaches the gym, the stakes of the night are clear. The Caldwell girls enter February 12 at 18–1, coming off their first loss of the season just two days earlier against West Orange. The defeat ended an undefeated start and sharpened the team’s focus heading into a matchup with West Morris Central. It’s the kind of response game that reveals what a season really is.
Kaci’s mindset is already set: be the best teammate on the floor.
Warmups begin, and her routine is deliberate. She shoots for about a minute, just enough to feel the ball and rhythm, then immediately shifts roles. She moves into rebounding lines, chasing misses and feeding passes back to teammates so they can get up the best shots possible. Over and over. Her focus is making sure others are ready and confident before tipoff.
Her voice carries across the court as well. She cheers teammates through drills and warmups, reinforcing energy and belief before the game even starts. For Kaci, impact begins before the opening whistle. When the game starts, Caldwell looks nothing like a team coming off its first loss. Defensive pressure builds early, transition opportunities follow, and the offensive rhythm comes quickly. Possession after possession, the margin grows. On the bench and on the floor, Kaci’s energy never drops, celebrating baskets, reinforcing defense, keeping teammates engaged.
By the final buzzer, Caldwell had delivered its answer: a 76–35 win over West Morris Central, improving to 19–1.
For Kaci, the result carries deeper meaning than one night. This season has become one of the most historic in Caldwell Girls Basketball history, and she knows she is living its final chapter as a senior. The wins, the growth, the bond of the group, she feels pride in all of it. There is sadness too, knowing each game is one closer to the last time she will wear a Caldwell jersey.
But she is leaving at a peak. For Kaci Pace, a game day is built hour by hour. Fuel, school, film, rehab, warmups, teamwork, and response. None of it is accidental. None of it is about individual spotlight. Every step is about readiness and about others. From first bell to final buzzer, she represents what this Caldwell girls team has become at 19–1: disciplined, resilient, and relentlessly connected.
