By Hannah Ossman

Shania Gomes is a sophomore guard on the women’s basketball team at Glencoe High School.

Shania grew up watching her older brothers play and was always fascinated by the sport. She had wanted to play for a long time, and was jealous of her older brothers, until Glencoe made a girls basketball team when she was in fourth grade. She has been playing ever since. 

Her favorite aspect of basketball is her team. 

“I love how my team works together and we play our hardest. We have a unique bond with each other and even with our coach, Coach Tsotigh,” said Shania. 

Some of Shania’s favorite memories from all her years playing so far are ones made with her teammates just goofing around after games. Any time they win a game, they turn on music and dance around and have a great time together. Shania’s team is like family to her. 

Shania has many different motivations to keep her going in basketball but making constant improvements after each game is very important to her. Keeping track of her progress and improving little by little is the way she holds herself to the highest standard. One main goal she has set for herself to improve on next season is to improve on her three-point shots. 

Another motivator in Shania’s life is her oldest brother, Ziggy. 

“He taught me so many things in basketball, and during the summer we always played one on one and he coached me while we played,” said Shania. 

While she has a few more years of high school left to enjoy, Shania is looking forward to learning all that she can and is excited to further her education. Even now, she always makes sure to get her schoolwork finished before she spends time playing basketball. 

She is looking forward to next season and all that her team will accomplish.