Personal Statement
Hi, my name is Emma-Kaye, or EK. I was born and raised in New Zealand and I have European roots. I love competitive team sports and since the age of 5 I have given everything a go, from athletics to netball, cross country running, basketball, soccer and swimming. I love getting better and looking at improving where I can. I pride myself in excelling at sport and have won many awards including breaking our high jump record at high school for three years, and winning sports girl of the year at school 4 times (Year 6, 7, 8 and 10). I proudly represent my club North Harbour Basketball and I also play at the highest level for my high school in the basketball premier team and 1. XI soccer team. My premier school basketball team won the National Championship in 2022 for the first time, and again in 2023.
Being left dominant means my opponent cannot read me as easily. In basketball, I can dribble and shoot with both hands, and I am a strong rebounder and defender. In soccer, I am a solid left wing player. I have been invited to the Basketball New Zealand National Talent Camp twice, in U14 (2021) and U15 (2022) and more recently I been selected into our national U15 team to represent my country at the FIBA Oceania Championship in Guam, in November 2022 where we won silver and qualified for the FIBA Asia Champs in 2023. My wish is to go to a US college after graduating high school in New Zealand in December 2025.
I see myself as a kind-hearted person who looks out for team and class mates, I work very hard on and off the court, I listen to my coaches so that I can grow into the best possible athlete. A strong team bond is important to me. I believe I am trustworthy, honest, hard working, positive and encouraging.
Academically, I am aiming for grades at a merit and excellence level. I appreciate my great support network at school, from my friends and family.
I speak Spanish at a beginners and German at an advanced level and hope to spend some time in Europe in the next 1 - 2 years (before finishing high school) to become fluent in more languages and to get to know different cultures. Combining that with a basketball camp overseas would be ideal to learn from different coaches and teams, and grow my international basketball IQ. I recently spent 6 weeks in Germany (January 2024) learning German while also training.
Emma
