Meghan Shipley '21 Recruiting Profile

                My interest in playing basketball came from Coach Amy Poffenbarger.  I had been playing soccer since I was four years old, and Coach Amy was an assistant Coach.  She would often ask me to play basketball, as she ran the basketball program in our Youth Association.  Eventually, when I was in the fifth grade, I tried basketball.  From the moment I played my first game, I was hooked.  I fell in love with the game.  I began to work four times a week with a Coach at a local park, where we focused on my learning the fundamentals of basketball.  I very quickly learned how to implement the skills into the game.  While I have only been playing basketball for five years now, I made varsity my freshman year.  I also take advantage of every opportunity to learn and grow.

                I learned how to tackle basketball, as well as my school work, through following my mother’s example.  When my mother was pregnant with me, she became a single mother.  At that time, she had two sons as well – ages two and four.  My mother was determined to be a role model and went to graduate school full time while raising us.  When finances were tough, my mother, who worked as a teacher for special needs kids during the day, would then teach at the local community college to make ends meet.  My mother stressed that no matter how hard things were, we would always learn the value of hard work.  As I approach any task in my life, I often remember the values my mother taught me.  I apply those values into every task I encounter.