Kymi Nance, in her senior season, recently eclipsed the 1,000 career point mark at Dunkirk, and is in the middle of what is possibly her best run of success in terms of both team and individual performance. But despite those things, Nance isn’t done. Neither her nor Khee will allow it. Both sisters bring out the best in each other, and drive each other to success, and that motivation is part of what sparks Kymi’s excellence.

“We’re both really competitive. When we’re playing pick up, she would push me and I would push her,” Nance said. “With her coaching at Medaille, she still tells me to this day that I’m the reason she does what she does. That really excites me, to let her know that I’m going to keep going as long as she does, and us pushing each other.

Kymi knew from a young age she wanted to be a basketball player, which was also in part due to her sister. She would go to all of Khee’s games when she was in middle school to watch her sister shine. As it turns out, those experiences helped Kymi get to where she is, in more ways than one.

“Being around her all the time, going to every single one of her games and watching her, helped me learn the experience myself, besides being able to play. When I got the chance to, it was exciting to be able to do so,” Kymi Nance said. “It was great having her motivating me, constantly saying ‘You can do this, you’ll beat me. You won’t just get to 1,000, you’ll pass me too.’ So when I finally got it, it was exciting and I know that wasn’t the only step. … My sister told me I’m not done.”

Dunkirk senior Kymi Nance, middle, drives to the basket during a game earlier this season against Tapestry at Dunkirk High School. That day, Dunkirk earned the first of what is now 14 wins this season for the Lady Marauders. Dunkirk’s 14-1 record is the best start to a season in Nance’s career. OBSERVER Photo by Ron Szot.

While she may not be done, it’s clear Kymi has already made an impact on her big sister.

“She’s made me better as a person. I’ve always strived to be my best because I knew she was always watching,” Khee Nance said. “She’s kept me honest. Most importantly I wanted to give her someone to look up to. I’m so happy she’s getting to experience some of the same experiences that I did because those were some of the best moments and achievements of my life and now they’ll be some of hers too. I think she’s done a very great job of making a name for herself and becoming the best Kymi Nance that she can be.”

Though Kymi didn’t feel pressure from her sister’s legacy, starting her own varsity career as an eighth grader proved to add a little of that stress. “I think that was a lot of pressure because I had a lot to do,” she said. “I was young, and my worst fear was messing up. It helped a lot that I was able to get into a groove early, but it was a little scary.”

Kymi’s motivation doesn’t end with her sister. Teammates Jessica Beehler, Olivia Smith, Nadara O’Dell and Amari Carter all started their freshmen years as Lady Marauders, joining Kymi on the varsity squad. The five have all written their varsity girls basketball scripts together. Growing with the same four girls for her whole career took some of the initial jitters of Kymi, and it is a big reason the team is so successful now, currently sitting atop one of the most challenging leagues in Western New York.

“It’s been really awesome, besides playing here, I’ve played with them in several other leagues. We’ll do Gus Macker 3-on-3 with each other. We play for the Jamestown Elite together. There really isn’t a time when we aren’t together playing basketball,” Kymi said. “I’m around them all the time. That really helps with our great relationship we’ve built overall.”

Kymi had a unique journey along the way to the 1,000-point milestone. She actually had no idea how close to the milestone she was, nor did anyone. It took a lot of digging on the parts of several members of the Dunkirk coaching staff and community to realize she had reached the magic number.

“It’s been difficult. A week before the season started, we tried to look for records and we lost them in a flood, so everything is gone,” said Dunkirk coach Ken Ricker. “So Coach [Bill] Canfield and a couple other people spent tons of hours in the library digging through every old newspaper, finding the schedule and finding the scores. We’re still missing three games. We know she got it, we just don’t know when.”

Flooded record books aren’t the only turmoil Kymi faced since her arrival at Dunkirk High School. Coming into her junior season, Nance was on her third head coach in as many years. But as she has done with every bit of adversity she has faced in her career, she didn’t let it bother her. Now that Coach Ricker is in his second year, Kymi is reaping the benefits of consistency.

“The only difficult thing is trying to get what they want you to do,” she said. “Taking it in is the most important thing. That helped me a lot. They all have different things they believe in, and we have to take that and still be able to play the game. With Coach Ricker staying for his second year, the cool part is that not a lot of coaches want to stay. I thank him a lot for that and pushing us at all times, and still believing in us. It’s cool he actually stayed.”

Ricker and Kymi’s relationship can’t be described as perfect. In fact, the two admittedly don’t always see eye-to-eye. Despite the occasional conflicting beliefs, Ricker wants the best for Kymi.

“Kymi and I battle every day,” Ricker said. “I see her as a total difference maker in all of girls basketball. I think she’s just different. She’s been able to settle for a long time and I don’t let her settle. There were many days last year where I thought she wouldn’t come back the next day, but the harder I was on her, the earlier she would show up the next day. Kymi has worked really hard, and I’m proud of her. I hope it’s all worth it for her.”

Meanwhile, Kymi understands and appreciates the belief.

“The main thing I see is that he wants the greatest from me,” she said. “He sees a lot in me, and sometimes I’m just like ‘Really?’ … I’m just trying to put it all together and believe in myself — and sometimes I don’t know. He believes in me 100 percent. He always talks about my strength. He always tells me I’m the strongest girl in the league, and I’m starting to get that. He tells me all the time that when I see a chance, to take it. Sometimes I get caught up and think I shouldn’t, but when I get in my groove, I’m driving constantly.”

Kymi knows her team has been often been viewed as underdogs. There’s always been a pressure on Dunkirk to accomplish more and more, no matter what they might have done. Not only do those things drive her, she’s ready to show it’s no longer the case.

“I get the energy from people believing that it’s not possible for something like this to happen,” Kymi said. “We’ve always been the underdogs. We get a win and now we have to get the next one. I definitely think that we’ve proven that we’re not the underdogs anymore and that it’s our time. … I want to show the next thing I can do and when we do progress together, that’s a great thing.”

Kymi’s leadership on the court is one of the many things her own sister admires about her.

“I think she realized how much of an impact she had on those around her,” Khee Nance said. “She realized what she was doing and how she was acting affected how her team carried themselves and how they played. If she had bad body language, didn’t bring the energy, drive, or aggressiveness, or score, then her team didn’t either. But when she did it, it was contagious and they followed in her footsteps. She’s a leader and sets her teammates up to be successful.”

While Kymi has done a lot of things on the court, her favorite memories of basketball have come off the court. She appreciates the time with her teammates the most.

“I love all the bus rides where we get to sing and laugh together,” she said. “It’s never a time where we say ‘Oh we have a new coach, it can’t be the same.’ … it’s always the same with my teammates.”

However, there is a new top contender for Kymi’s favorite moment. On Jan. 6, Nance hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer that gave the Lady Marauders a 78-75 victory over the Southwestern Lady Trojans in Dunkirk. The Lady Marauders had relinquished a 25-point lead and even trailed by seven points with just over a minute to go, until Nance carried her team back and won them the game. When reminded of this, she laughed.

“That was really awesome too,” she said.