HAYTI – Kami Wadsworth is the perfect definition of a complete basketball player.

The Hamlin senior can handle the ball like a point guard, hit perimeter shots like a shooting guard, drive to the hoop like a forward, and is nearly unstoppable in the post as her team’s center. Throw in a basketball IQ off the charts and it’s easy to see why opposing teams have no answers when it comes to dealing with Wadsworth.

“We keep changing her around. That’s the beauty of the whole thing,” said Hamlin coach Tim Koisti. “She can keep playing wherever. Whatever we ask her to do she just does it. I don’t think I’ve had a player able to play one through five, basically.”

Wadsworth grew up being her team’s primary ballhandler, so dribbling the ball comes naturally to the 5-foot-11 standout.

“When I was younger I was not quite as tall as I am now,” Wadsworth said. “I was a point guard all the way until I got to my freshman year.”

Wadsworth could not only handle the ball, she could shoot it like a guard and still can.

She ranks among the top 3-point shooters percentage wise in Hamlin history and shares a school record for most treys in a single game with six.

The squad now has a point guard allowing Wadsworth to move into the post where she has thrived.

“I prefer the post,” Wadsworth said of her new position, noting she likes the physical nature of being an inside player rather than setting the pace out front.

Wadsworth is more than just a physical presence down low. She has learned how to post up strong and once she gets the ball, there is little a single defender can do.

“I think I slowly learned that if I can get good position, the move I have to make or the shot I have to finish is a lot easier than if I don’t have good position,” Wadsworth said.

Once Wadsworth has the ball down low, it is often too late to prevent her from scoring.

“That’s one of the things that I hear from other coaches,” Koisti said, “number one, she never stops moving, and number two, she’s always getting position and once she has it, it’s hard to get around.”

And if teams decide to foul her, Wadsworth makes them pay because she is an 83 percent free-throw shooter.

Sending a double team to guard her isn’t much of an option either, because Wadsworth is a willing passer and the Chargers have solid outside shooters.

“She’s not a selfish player,” Koisti said. “That’s one of the other things that makes her so good.”

Wadsworth has developed post moves and has the ability to finish strong with both hands on either side of the basket, which makes the task of stopping her even more of a challenge.

“If I can finish with both hands,” Wadsworth said, “it makes me harder to guard, I would think.”

The University of Sioux Falls recruit credits her sisters, Lexi and Kylee for helping to hone her skills.

This past season Kami surpassed Lexi to become the school’s all-time leading scorer.

While Wadsworth has all the physical attributes to excel, she also has the mental toughness and understanding of the game that puts her over the top.

Koisti said Wadsworth has figured out when and where the ball is going to be entered into the post which makes it easier for her to obtain position.

The 4.0 plus student in the classroom not only uses that knowledge to perfect her own game, she makes everyone around her better, including JV players in practice.

“She’s willing to share her knowledge of the game with everyone around her,” Koisti said. “That helps my team to become that much better, not just now but in the future, because she’s helping these younger kids.”

Wadsworth is also smart enough to know that even though her team is undefeated and top-seeded heading into this week’s State A tournament in Watertown, it does not ensure anything. The Chargers are coming off back-to-back runner-up finishes at the state tourney and there are challenges that await.

While those setbacks in the championship games serve as motivation, there is still work to be done.

“It’s been a lot of motivation,” Wadsworth said, “but there’s a lot a lot of good teams in Class A, so I’m just excited to finish this senior year hopefully strong.”

And make no mistake, Wadsworth will do whatever she can to help lead the Chargers in their quest for a state championship.

“That would be a cherry on top, but nothing is guaranteed,” Wadsworth said. “Everything has to be worked for.”