Trinity ladies’ basketball has had improving fortunes in the preceding few years. A semi-final appearance in last year’s league playoffs was the high point for a club very much on the way up. This season the team will hope to go one better, and will be massively aided by the addition of two top quality American players, who are participating as Victory Scholars in the Sport Changes Life (SCL) programme.
Katie Ganser and Shelby Smith are the two latest players to join DUBC on the programme, and they bring a wealth of experience on the court. Ganser is a graduate of Merrimack University, Massachusetts, where she spent “two years as team captain. In that time we turned our college from a five-win season team to a 17-win team. It was the biggest turnaround in our division, and we got a trip to the conference semi-finals.” Shelby Smith on the other hand, joins following a four year stint in St. Joseph’s, Pennsylvania. As captain of that team, Smith led her team to the Atlantic 10 Championship, which earned us a place in the NCAA Championship for the first time in 13 years. “Basketball was very intense during my four years. It was almost like a full-time job, but I was afforded an opportunity that many don’t get, and I’m very grateful.”
The two students are postgrads in Trinity, and are attending the university, in addition to their work in the Sport Changes Life programme. SCL is a programme based in Belfast, Northern Ireland whose mission is to use sport to impact the lives of at-risk youth while creating ambassadors to Ireland from the US. This is the first year SCL is working with Trinity. Shelby explains the work of SCL; “we work in the local schools and community to promote good values through sport, and to play for a local club as well as our University. It’s a lot of commitment, but it’s a rewarding experience. We all keep blogs on our info website sportchangeslife.com.”
The programme came to the attention of the girls in different ways. “My cousin, Frank Powell, played on the All-Ireland team for about ten years. He met the founder of SCL, Gareth Maguire, through that team”, says Katie. Shelby encountered the initiative when she travelled to Ireland with her university team. “I was introduced to SCL, and then later in the year I considered it as something I would like to pursue. I’m extremely thankful that I did.”
Katie Ganser (right) is one of two Victory Scholars in Trinity this year
On their plans for the year, and their experience of Trinity thus far, both athletes are very optimistic. Shelby says, “I love Trinity thus far. There is so much history and tradition associated with the institution that it is an honour to be a part of it. I am very excited to meet the team and start playing. I think it is going to be a fun year.” Katie espouses the same enthusiasm about the year ahead; “I cannot wait to start training with the women’s basketball team and we expect to have a successful season. Our eyes are already set on winning Intervarsities.”
