All work and play has made Burke one great Viking

By JASON ELLIOTT

Sports writer

You’ve got to get up pretty early in the morning if you’re going to outwork Coeur d’Alene High senior Skylar Burke.

And even then, it still might not be enough.

More on that later.

Burke is a competitive person.

It could be as simple as on the volleyball or basketball court, the softball diamond or in the classroom at Coeur d’Alene High.

And she’ll be enjoying it along the way.

Burke, a three-sport standout at Coeur d’Alene in volleyball, basketball and softball, is winding down her time on the basketball court for the Vikings, who are 17-3 this season.

“It’s a lot of work,” said Burke, a 5-foot-8 guard who has signed to play basketball at UC Santa Barbara. “A lot of people would say that I’m kind of crazy because I’m always on the go. But I love it. I love to compete and love to be continuously competing in everything that I’m doing. It keeps me busy and I enjoy doing it.”

As for which is her favorite …

“Honestly, it’s been a toss-up between basketball and softball for a long time for me,” Burke said. “It just kind of came down to the opportunity I had in club basketball and club softball, so I just followed that.”

Opportunities were there in softball for Burke, an all-league selection at shortstop as a junior, at the next level.

“She’s got this sense of intensity,” Coeur d’Alene softball coach Bobbi Darretta said. “I had her as a freshman, and she didn’t know which sport to pick. I told her at some point, you’re probably going to choose. I told her she could always walk on to a team, whether it was basketball or softball somewhere. When she told me she’d picked basketball, I was kind of shocked, but she brings a lot of energy to whatever sport she plays.”

“I had some communications with some coaches, but it wasn’t something that I pursued,” Burke said of softball. “As I continued on in high school, I just felt like pursuing basketball a lot more than softball. Going into my sophomore year, I stopped playing club softball and really focused on basketball.”

Burke also spent the last three years on the Viking volleyball team.

“It’s a lot mentally and physically on your body to constantly be doing something throughout the year,” Burke said. “I love it, and that’s the stuff I’ve done since I was little. And I can’t think of doing it any other way.”

Coeur d’Alene volleyball coach Carly Curtis said it was Burke’s work ethic that jumped out to her.

"Skylar, not only is she an exceptional athlete, but also a competitor,” Curtis said. “She does a great job of motivating her teammates and nobody is going to outwork her. That’s how she shows up to practice. She’s just an awesome teammate and one of those players you’re going to miss.”

Playing three sports has also helped her grow as an athlete as well.

“Each sport has its own aspect and different movements,” Burke said. “It’s definitely helped me become a more well-rounded athlete.”

Curtis added that after some convincing, Burke joined the volleyball team as a sophomore.

“Her athleticism was outstanding,” Curtis said. “We knew with how she competed that she’d contribute. She’s got quick feet, which makes her a great blocker. Anything in her area, you just knew she’d do something good with it. And when things got stressful, she could always calm her teammates down.”

Burke, a 5-foot-8 shooting guard, signed with the Gauchos of the Big West Conference in November.

“I love it down there,” Burke said. “The coaches were awesome, and I fell in love with them and the environment they’ve built around the team and the school. It just felt like a good fit for me. I really wanted to go to California to play because I love the beaches and all that stuff. The other thing is because my dad (Brian) lives down there, and he hasn’t been able to see me play as much. When I got the chance to go on a visit down there, it was one of my top schools. I liked seeing how they run their team and how much everyone supports each other. I think I will fit well into that program.”

Idaho and Saint Mary’s were the other Division I schools interested.

“I was in contact with U of I and had been offered at Central Washington and University of Providence (an NAIA school in Great Falls, Mont.),” Burke said. “I was in contact with some other coaches, but nobody had offered before I committed to Santa Barbara.”

Skylar’s older sister Breanna, also a former Viking, played three years of softball as a pitcher at UNLV before spending her graduate season at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tenn.

Burke added that basketball was something she decided to pursue early on in high school.

“I love basketball because of the pace of the game,” Burke said. “There’s constant action and there’s always things happening. I like that if something else isn’t working, like I can’t score, I can make up for it in other ways like hustle plays or on defense. It’s also a sport where you can improve just by working with yourself.”

Burke is the reigning IEL Player of the Year, and was also selected to the all-league team as a sophomore.

Coeur d’Alene has won the last two regional championships, winning the 2019 title as the second seed and upsetting top-seeded Lake City in the title game.

“The grind that we put in to get those wins is something I’ll never forget,” Burke said. “The first one was special. For a few years leading into that game, Coeur d’Alene hadn’t had a good record. To come out in that game and beat Lake City in its own gym to get to go to state, it was pretty special.”

It doesn’t matter the game — softball, volleyball or basketball — Burke likes to get into the spirit of the game by listening to music.

“Before each game, my favorite thing to do is jam out in the locker room,” Burke said. “We just usually listen to upbeat music to get hyped up and ready to play. Not specific, but upbeat music really.”

As for what has made her thrive in three different sports …

“I’ve learned that if you’re willing to put in the work, you’ll get the results,” Burke said. “If you’re willing to grind and work hard in each practice and game, then the results will come and you can accomplish what you want.”

“She never takes her eye off the ball,” said Darretta, who pitched at the University of Kentucky and Walla Walla Community College after graduating from Lake City. “She knows that she can’t get to everything and when she can’t, she’s just able to shake it off and moves onto the next play. And she’s spread that around the team. She’s just one of those players that every coach wants to have once in their career.”

Coeur d’Alene girls basketball coach Nicole Symons said it might have been the coronavirus pandemic that flipped things for Burke.

“When she came in as a freshman, she depended on her athleticism for her to survive in the game and be effective on the floor,” Symons said. “She’s really worked hard to understand the game and develop in that area. Her basketball IQ, that’s increased and her outside shooting really improved from her sophomore to junior year.”

Symons has coached Burke in some fashion for the past 10 years.

“I’ve coached her since second grade off and on,” Symons said. “I’ve been part of her basketball/sports journey since she was thrown onto a Parks and Rec team all those years ago. She’s the most coachable kid I’ve ever worked with. She loves her teammates, life and the process. She doesn’t just love the games and spotlight. She loves to get into the gym when nobody is watching and work on her game. She’s just a good kid. She wants the best for her teammates and wants to be a part of their lives, not just on the court, but in every aspect.”

When the pandemic hit in 2020, athletes were unable to practice in full as a team, instead settling for just being able to shoot individually in the gym.

“She really just got in the gym and worked on things,” Symons said. “All we could do was shoot, and couldn’t play any games. So when she was able to develop that outside game, that’s what made her a threat on the basketball court. She learned when to play fast and when to slow things down and just let the game come to her.”

And Burke knew that eventually, with all that work, things were going to change.

“As a freshman, I wasn’t the biggest scorer or had the best skill set,” Burke said. “But the one thing I always kept in my mind was that I was going to be the hardest worker on the court, no matter what we were doing. From then, I really took it upon myself to practice outside of team practices and that’s when my game took a big jump.”

“From the summer club season and this year, her ability to play the point and trusting her with the ball and not force it is going to help her at the next level,” Symons said. “With her size, being able to get the ball in her hands and get us set in the offense has grown. She’s got the ability to play the point guard now, and she’ll be able to play the 1, 2 or 3 at the college level, which will help her with playing time.”

It has been Nicole’s influence that has kept Burke on the right path in basketball.

“She’s the reason I started getting into basketball,” Burke said. “She’s been my coach since second grade. She’s always been the one to push me, calm me down and get me where I need to be. She’s supported me through each game and everything that happens.”

That includes a tough shooting night, foul trouble or anything else that might happen on the court.

“She’s always reminding me when I get down on myself that I’m a good player, and that I can be the best player in the gym,” Burke said. “But I just need to calm myself down. That’s really helped keep me in check. She’s really been there for me in everything I do.”

Just a year after graduating six seniors from a team that went 19-3, winning the Inland Empire League for the first time since 2014 and advancing to state as regional champions for the second straight time, Coeur d’Alene is right back in prime position for another trip to state.

“We all come into practice and really push each other to get better each day,” Burke said. “It really helps when we’re in here, working and grinding for each other to get better. They push me to be a better player. Not just for me, but for them too.”

And while the attention might have been on some of the other teams in the league, Coeur d’Alene enters tonight’s regular season finale at Lewiston with an 8-0 record in Inland Empire League play.

“It’s been an interesting season,” Burke said. “Coming into the season, everyone was hyping up Lake City and Post Falls, and nobody was expecting us to come out and play like we have. We’ve got a great group of girls and coaches that really enforce the grind that it takes to win games. We’ve accepted that role of a challenge and continue to push ourselves. Now, hopefully people notice that we’re still here and didn’t go anywhere. We’re still here to win and compete.”

Coeur d’Alene’s last trip to the state championship game was in 2014, when the Vikings beat Rocky Mountain of Meridian. The Vikings fell to Thunder Ridge of Idaho Falls 53-39 in the semifinals last season at state. Coeur d'Alene lost to Rigby in the third-place game the following morning.

“We kind of had a rocky outcome to state last year,” Burke said. “Last year, we had a solid team and could have made an impact if we’d made it to the championship game. We just came out slow in the second half, and I really wish we could have that (Thunder Ridge) game back.

“You want to remember the losses, because it motivates you to want to win and not get into that position again. Coming off that loss, you just really want to work harder so that you can improve from the last time.”

Coeur d’Alene faced Thunder Ridge earlier this season, falling 54-52 in the TimberLion Tournament on Dec. 28 at Timberline High in Boise.

“It was down to the buzzer and was kind of a dogfight,” Burke said. “We kind of had a chip on our shoulder because they knocked us out last year. But that game also showed our younger kids what we’re up against with the teams in Boise and that we can compete with any team in the state.”

Burke went over the 1,000-point mark for her career in a game against Lake City on Jan. 10. A few weeks later, teammate Madi Symons did the same against Lewiston.

“We’ve always been a duo,” Burke said of Madi Symons, a junior forward. “It’s always been me and her pushing each other in practice. Our connection has always been there on the court. From her, I’ve really learned how to play off other people on the court. Her and I are good at keeping each other’s heads up and that’s been a big thing between us.”

“She’s always been a part, not only of the team, but our family,” Nicole Symons said. “She’s a family friend, one of my daughter’s best friends and she’s like a daughter to me. When you send your kid away to college, you lose a part of you. For us, it’s going to be like losing a daughter and a player that has led by example since her freshman year and been a part of the culture switch. We’ve got some leaders here that just show the younger kids what’s expected when they walk into the gym. Someone will take her place, but it’s going to be a big role to fill with how she loves the game, works hard, and expects her teammates to do the same. That will be a hard thing to fill for sure.”

Earlier this year, Burke was having her senior photos taken by Christine Woeller Photography one morning.

As Woeller explains …

“We had a shoot scheduled for 8 a.m.,” Woeller said. “But she was up at 6 a.m. so she could go and shoot beforehand. I told her she didn’t need to do that, but she did it anyway.”

Burke is 10th in the graduating class at Coeur d’Alene High and holds a 4.3 grade point average.

“Academics is almost like another sporting event for me,” Burke said. “I want to compete in the classroom, just like I compete on the court. I take a lot of pride in doing the best I can get to those ‘A's.”

“She’s just so positive,” Curtis said. “Even if you’re having a bad day, you know she’s going to pick you up. She’s a pretty lighthearted kid and going to have fun. But when the time comes, she knows when to be serious and when to have some fun.”