Today's post is written by Senior guard, Jasmine Lovejoy:
My last stand with the sport I love has brought me to my senior year of basketball. This year has been full of excitement and some adversity that we have built on in a positive way. The beginning of my senior year has been the most wonderful experience of my basketball playing career. I am so fortunate to have the teammates and coaching staff that I have. It is obvious to me that this is quickly becoming a year I will never forget. Although we have faced some adversity, we have been able to find positives and grow and learn from these experiences. We have met these challenges head on, worked harder and come together as a team to get the job done.
We have done a lot of things as a team to continue to grow closer as a unit. One thing that sticks out in my mind took place on Halloween. Now this wasn't your typical Halloween night, because we spent the evening doing a canned food drive!! The event, set up by SAAC (Student Athlete Advisory Council), was called "Trick or Treat, so others can eat". All the teams at Missouri Southern were asked to pick a particular area in Joplin and knock on doors and ask for canned food goods. The members of SAAC then delivered these canned food items to a homeless shelter to help them replenish their shelves. As a team we divided into 3 groups and hit the road through a local neighborhood. After over an hour of "Trick or Treating" we came back with 393 cans. It was a great time for us to grow closer as a team while getting to really do some good work for a GREAT cause.
In addition to things off the court, we have done A LOT on it as well!! The start of this year began with a 7 week long preseason that was the most mentally and physically demanding training I have ever been through. It consisted of running miles around the track on those daunted Friday mornings, enhanced weight workouts, sprint workouts, agilities, shooting drills, footwork drills, and groupwork (no more than 4 players on the court for 2 hours a week, per NCAA rules). All the work that we did during those 7 weeks was in preparation for the beginning of official practice on October 15th.
October 15th was the day that we took everything from groupwork and began to apply it to the framework of our team's system. As a team and individually we have worked on the very key fundamentals that will mold us into being a great team. Also for this past month, we have focused and placed a HUGE emphasis on the MOST IMPORTANT things to our success: making layups, making free throws, and limiting turnovers. We know that if we win the battle in those 3 areas, we will put ourselves in a great spot to be successful. We have challenged ourselves early this year with 2 very competitive scrimmages and an exhibition against the University of Arkansas. Those 2 scrimmages and the exhibition were a huge learning experience for our team. There were a lot of positives that we look to build on, but it also showed us the things that we must work daily to improve on.
Finally, after all of this work, we have come to GAME WEEK!!! This week we officially open our season with a Tuesday road contest at the University of Arkansas-Ft Smith and my last first game as a college athlete!! As a team, we are so excited to get our season underway!! To all of our fans: Thank you so much for your loyal and loving support. We lean so heavily on your support and your area GREATLY appreciated. For those of you who can't make it to the game, be sure to check out the radio broadcast through our website!
Until next time...It's a GREAT day to be a LION!!
Jasmine Lovejoy
Senior Guard
