It must have been a comforting feeling for Kyle Porter.
 
Starting his third season as head coach at Silver Lake, Porter returned his entire roster from a team that had gone 24-2 the previous season, finishing third at the Class 3A state tournament after a semifinal loss to eventual champion Goodland. That season he also added a talented freshman whose abilities certainly warranted a spot in the starting lineup.
 
Instead, he had that freshman come off the bench. And there wasn’t one bit of pushback.
 
And that’s when Porter knew that for the next three years, his team was going to be in great hands once Kailyn Hanni became the starting point guard.
 
“Kailyn came in her freshman year to a stacked team that returned every single starter,” Porters said. “She came off the bench for us that season and accepted that role fully. And that made us even more dangerous because when she came in, she immediately changed the game.”
 
Hanni has been a game-changer and a difference-maker for the program ever since. During her three years as Silver Lake’s starting point guard, the Eagles reached the Class 3A state championship three times.
 
Playing a somewhat supporting role on a senior-laden team in 2023-24, Hanni helped the Eagles to one of the most dominating seasons in state history as Silver Lake not only went 26-0 but won all but two games that season by double-digits. In the championship game, it was Hanni who led the way with 26 points in a 66-61 win over Hesston, going a stellar 13 of 14 at the free throw line in the contest.
 
Taking over a leading role last year, Hanni led Silver Lake back to the title game where they fell in a 48-45 heartbreaker to Halstead. This year, the Eagles were back with a vengeance and with Hanni leading the way once again, they finished on top for the second time in three years, beating Osage City 60-44 for the 3A crown.
 

 
And Hanni credited that initial year on the bench for helping transform her into one of the greatest players in Silver Lake’s tradition-rich history.
 
“Those upperclassmen were incredible and props to them for helping me grow with my leadership and helping me grow as a player,” said Hanni, a member of this year’s KSHSAA Covered All-State Top 5. “It just helped me so much the past two or three years. I couldn’t have done this without them showing me the way.”
 
Or maybe she could have.
 
A lot of Hanni’s game did transform throughout the years. A pass-first point guard at the onset of her high school career, Hanni evolved into a big-time scoring threat over her final two seasons. 
 
And knowing when those moments were was a big key to her success. Even if Porter needed a reminder every once in a while, including this year’s championship game.
 
“It was funny, in the first half I thought she wasn’t as aggressive as we want her to be,” Porter said. “We were telling her, ‘Kailyn, you’ve got to get to the rim.’ And she said, ‘I’ll get to the rim when I need to.’ She just always knew what we needed and when we needed it and when she had to take over, she took over.”
 
If Hanni found herself in a one-on-one matchup, she lit up. Or more correctly, she lit it up.
 
“Sometimes I’m just, ‘Bring a screen, bring a screen,’ and then I just go,” she said. “I loved those matchups.”
 
Her fearless style often sent her hunting for points in the paint instead of settling for perimeter shots. She only hit 53 3-pointers in her career.
 
But it was her effectiveness to find those points inside that was remarkable. Listed at a generous 5-foot-7 in the program, Hanni played so much bigger than her frame suggested. And even when she routinely found herself trying to score against much bigger defenders, she found a way to either get the bucket or draw a foul, often times accomplishing both.
 
“I like to think that I’m tall,” Hanni said. “I can jump high.”
 

 
Hanni’s ability to finish at the rim led to better than 50% field goal shooting each of her last two seasons when she became Silver Lake’s primary scorer. Her ability to draw fouls saw her hit 389 free throws in her career (No. 2 all-time in Silver Lake history), including 287 in the past two seasons.
 
“She was creator her first year, turned into a little bit of a scorer her sophomore year and then her junior year, it was just her strength inside and being able to finish through contact,” Porter said of Hanni’s effectiveness in averaging 18.1 points per game as a junior and 18.2 points per game as a senior. “She was never a natural, ‘I’m going to score the ball,’ kind of player; she wanted to pass. She developed into a complete scorer.”
 
Finishing her career with 1,404 career points, Hanni wound up third on Silver Lake’s career scoring chart behind Rhonda Matzke (1,517 points) and former teammate Makenzie McDaniel (1,493 points). She also set the program’s single-game scoring record with a 39-point game against Royal Valley this season.
 
Furthermore, she leaves as Silver Lake’s all-time lead in both assists (585) and steals (339).
 
Silver Lake’s leading rebounder each of the past two seasons as well, there’s not too many ways in which Hanni didn’t have some sort of impact on Silver Lake’s success.
 
“She’s the most complete player that I’ve ever coached,” Silver Lake coach Kyle Porter said. “Not just what she does with the ball and her command of the entire floor, but her ability to pass, her ability to score. And if you looked in our huddles, when we were down, she was such a calming influence. It’s one thing for a coach to say that, but when you have a player do that, that calms everybody else down. She’s an incredible leader and an incredible kid.”
 
But don’t just take it from him. That’s how Hanni was viewed by those who faced her or saw her play.
 
Some of the comments from opposing coaches:
 
“STUD. Controls the game without looking like she’s trying. Can get a bucket whenever she wants and could score at will but chooses to make her teammates around her better.”
 
“Simply the best. She did whatever was necessary. Coach on the court.”
 
“Unstoppable guard on the drive and finishes a high percentage of the time. Draws fouls when her team needs points. Physical. Definitely the best player we saw all season.”
 
“Best player in our league and it’s not even close.”
 
“The best basketball player I have ever seen. She can do everything and does what is needed to win.”
 

 
While the praise and records are certainly nice, it wasn’t a driving force for Hanni throughout her career. Instead, it was merely doing everything she could to lead her team to victory, which she did in 77 of the 81 games she started in her career with the Eagles going 100-7 overall in her four years in the program.
 
“I don’t really pay attention to all that stuff,” Hanni said of her place in Silver Lake’s record books. “I just pay attention to our team and how much fun we have during the year. This year was probably one of the most fun years I’ve ever had.”