A Strong Foundation

The New Basketball Season

“Our mission is to build a strong foundation,” UAU women’s head basketball coach Jaylen Vella said. He didn’t hesitate to add, “One brick at a time.” 

Union is special when it comes to sports. We build our foundation on God before we build a foundation as a team. The men’s basketball team emphasizes this every day at practice. Before they hit the court for drills, skills, and conditioning, the men gather together on the stage of the Thunderdome. One team member shares a short devotional thought, and after, the rest go around the circle saying something they appreciate about that team member. It may seem frivolous to the passerby, but the benefit of building solid and genuine relationships off the court shines through in their chemistry on the court. The women’s team is building a foundation as well, although it’s more subtle when compared to the men’s team's daily devotional thought. The women’s team is building chemistry by always showing up and encouraging each other. When someone makes a mistake or falls behind, the others rally to motivate them to move forward. No one is left out of left behind. 

Another important aspect of a new sports season is improvement through teamwork and goals. The Warrior basketball teams have already begun preparing for their first games by improving on what they learned from last season. After interviewing a handful of Warrior athletes, each said similar things about goals for the season. Many had personal goals, but nearly everyone had something to say about team goals. 

Braden Essex, third-year player and a captain of the men’s team, said, “I really want everyone to contribute in their roles. If we all do the little things this year, it’ll lead to wins. So focus on the little things. I’m playing without my brother, and I want to prove to be one of those guys that the team can lean on. Playing without my brother can be a little scary, but I got teammates to fill in…I still got fourteen other brothers on my team.” 

His teammate, Chris Johnson, summed it up saying, “Complexity is best tackled collectively.”

The first men’s basketball game is on October 23, and the first women’s game is on October 27. The first home games for both the men’s and women’s teams are on November 11 in the Thunderdome. Both teams are building their strong foundations now, so when the time comes, they can bring their chemistry to the court and–as the kids say these days–get the “W.” 

Women’s Basketball Team

Michelle Morara

Sami Hoffer

Nyadheal Dak

Lily Tubbs

Kassie Abrahamson 

Emily Branda

Rylie Davis

Regan Garman

Ericka Montour

Hailey Orian

Jillian Dougherty

Nyanbay Puok

Sally Trana

Men’s Basketball Team

Josh Kerongo

Chris Johnson

Braden Essex

Alvin Mokua

Rico Cenat

Michael Middleton

Frankie Lester

Kent Krueger

Dane Britain

Emil Henry

Liam Cassell

Jaiden Flowers

Michael Boit

JP Grubbs

Yann Birasa

Noah Staats

Damon Strong

By: Sami Hoffer