HOSPITALITY STUDENT SERVING UP HEAT ON THE BASKETBALL COURT

A final -year WSU hospitality student continues to shine not only in the university’s industrial kitchen, but also on the basketball court, where she continues to collect notable national accolades as both a player and administrator.

After her selection as team manager of the national women’s basketball team that participated at the Confederation of Universities and Colleges Sports Association (CUCSA) sports games held I n Pretoria recently, WSU basketball captain Samantha van Aswegen quickly followed that up with a call to represent her country at the FIBA Africa Youth Nations’ League 3X3 tournament that took place in Uganda from 5 -11 August.

Van Aswegen’s SA squad, which also included former WSU basketball player and management graduate, Keatlegile Ramorwesi, squared up against formidable opponents in the form of Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, and hosts Uganda in what was a punishing schedule seven-day schedule.

“The Youth Nations League is organized in “Stops” of sextuplets. A sextuplet has six competition days or six mini tournaments that are held in one place. The u/23, which is subsequent to the sextuplets, is considered the highest level of competition for 3X3. It provides a much-needed platform for players and national federations to high level international competition,” said the Chairman of the tournament’s Organizing Committee, Hamza Nyambogo Mnemo, in a statement.

Van Aswegen, who plays point guard and shooting guard, said despite finding out about her selection just less than two weeks before the tournament kicked off, she was not deterred owing to her self-belief and confidence in her own talent and abilities.

She said the selection, which left her elated, was a dream come true because representing her country had been a dream of hers since she started playing basketball in high school.

The young protégé first took to basketball as a recreational sport in grade 8 as a high school pupil at Rand Girl’s High School in Parktown, Johannesburg.

After falling madly in love with the sport at high school, Van Aswegen then joined for a non-profit organization club called Learn To Fly (LTF), where she further developed her skills on the court.

“As my love and appreciation for the sport grew, and in order to hone my talent, I joined an academy where I then started competing with the boys and from then on my journey towards a professional career in basketball took off,” she said.

During her nine-year basketball career, the WSU captain has racked up many an achievement, including dawning provincial Gauteng colours in 2019, and surpassing a pool of 50 players to win the overall All Star award at the Lady Bucks basketball tournament held in Johannesburg.

Following a grueling six-day schedule where the teams played an average of three games a day, amassing an overall total of 17 games at the end of the tournament, the SA squad eventually finished fourth, missing out on qualification for the upcoming u/23 to held in Mongolia in September.

By Thando Cezula