It was Cassidy Arni’s athleticism that caught Sarah Meadows’ attention three years ago, leading Geneva’s coach to promote the freshman to the varsity.
What a long way Arni has come since then.
“I’ve definitely made progress,” Arni said. “Freshman year, I was running around out there like a chicken with my head cut off. I didn’t know all the plays that well and I wasn’t very good.
“Fortunately, they left me out there some.”
That they did, letting Arni fulfill the dream she had to be on varsity since playing recreation ball in fourth grade.
Arni, now a 5-foot-11 junior guard/forward, kept getting better too. The 2021-22 Beacon-News/Courier-News Girls Basketball Player of the Year emerged this season as the best player on the area’s best team.
“As far as overall player, she’s probably the best around,” St. Charles North coach Mike Tomczak said of Arni. “She can do everything — a pure talent.”
Arni averaged 14.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.5 steals for the Vikings (25-5). They had a 14-0 run through the tough DuKane Conference.
Meadows cited “our tough schedule and the fact ‘Cass’ led us in almost all categories. She has the ability to take over any game she is in.
“She sees the floor really well and she guards the best player we play against, whether it’s a guard or a post.”
That versatility is what makes Arni so special.
As for the success of her high school team, she’s quick to share the credit.
On any given night, 6-1 senior forward Zosia Wrobel, 6-0 junior forward Lauren Slagle or 5-11 sophomore guard Leah Palmer were capable of putting up big numbers to lead the team. Wrobel was in her fourth varsity season.
“We got more comfortable with each other,” Arni said. “We did well as a team. I couldn’t do anything without the girls on the team to push me. I try to be a leader on and off the court, but you can’t do it all individually.”
The tradition continued for the Vikings, who won the program’s 13th straight regional title and 10th in 11 years under Meadows before being upset in a sectional semifinal by conference rival St. Charles East.
The only interruption in the streaks came last year when there was no playoffs during a truncated season due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“This league is insane,” Tomczak said. “It’s loaded, and every night is an absolute war. To come out undefeated takes great coaching, great players. It’s a difficult test because it’s so physical.”
Playing the Vikings’ up-tempo style and being physical suits Arni just fine.
The youngest of Bruce and Beth Arni’s three children, growing up with older brothers Lance and Logan helped toughen her up, Cassidy conceded.
Lance, a linebacker, played NCAA Division II football at Minnesota State and basketball through his sophomore year in high school.
“I really looked up to him and wanted to be like him,” Cassidy said.
Her parents grew up in Sandwich, where dad played basketball and mom played volleyball before she did the same at Lewis.
Cassidy played volleyball through freshman year and still helps her mother coach the sport occasionally at the Geneva Rec Center, but her focus is on basketball.
She also earned the respect of opposing coaches in separating herself from the pack.
“The toughest one for us to go against was Cassidy Arni,” Batavia coach Kevin Jensen said. “There’s not even a question. Cassidy, from what I saw, was the most consistent.”
Arni has scholarship offers from Lewis and San Francisco, but looks forward to what this spring and the summer travel season brings.
“She has matured a little bit and her understanding of the game has gotten better,” Meadows said. “I think she’s found her place, but she can still get better and will.
“Her future is so bright because she’s always been a kid who looks at herself and asks, ‘How can I be better?'”