Saratoga Native Among Nation’s Best Three-Point Shooters
Florida Gulf Coast University women’s basketball player Dolly Cairns poses with Rich Johns, a former Saratoga Springs tennis coach and founder of “Act With Respect Always.” Photo provided by Johns.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Dolly Cairns, a Saratoga native and the all-time girls basketball scoring leader at Saratoga Springs High School, is in the midst of an exceptional, sharpshooting season at Florida Gulf Coast University. Cairns currently ranks 16th in three-point percentage (44.55%) among all NCAA Division 1 women’s basketball players.
Cairns is a starting shooting guard averaging 9.2 points, 3 assists, and 2 rebounds per game in the 2024-25 season thus far, helping to lift Florida Gulf Coast to a 19-3 overall record. As of press time, the Eagles had won 12 straight games.
Last season, Cairns and company fell in the first round of the NCAA women’s “March Madness” tournament in a nailbiter against the No. 5 seed Oklahoma Sooners. After the loss, Cairns told Saratoga TODAY that she plans to pursue a career in healthcare following the conclusion of the 24-25 season.
In high school, Cairns played for the Blue Streaks, scoring more than 2,000 points to set the school’s all-time scoring record. In 2019, she committed to the University of Rhode Island, where she played for two seasons before transferring to Florida Gulf Coast.