Gill does Gatha proud in basketball
Daniel Renfrey
TO represent your state after playing a sport for just five years is a remarkable achievement by anyone’s standards and Leongatha’s Lara Gill will do just that in 2020.
The 12-year-old Leongatha Lightning star was recently selected to represent Vic Country in the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup in New South Wales from January 12-18.
“It was amazing when I found out,” Lara said of making the team.
“I asked mum straight after school and when she told me it was just really exciting.”
Lara’s selection comes as no surprise to her peers and coaches.
The power forward’s work ethic is strong, as she constantly works on her game at and outside of training.
“I train twice a week with the team, but overall I play about six times a week. I try to practice whenever I can,” Lara said.
“It’s pretty exciting. It just feels like all my hard work has paid off.”
Lara has experienced fast development as a basketballer, which she credits her support cast for.
She is a strong and aggressive defender, and while she is talented in most aspects of the game, she is always looking to improve.
“My parents, my club and all of my coaches have been great for my development,” she said.
“I want to keep developing and improve my rebounding and definitely my long-range shooting.”
These aspects of the young gun’s game already seem to be improving.
She dominated on both ends of the floor on Sunday during the Leongatha basketball grand finals, in which she won both the U14s and U17s games, strong form leading into the junior cup, for which she has big goals.
“I’m hoping to put all my practice into action and play at a high standard consistently,” Lara said.
“I also hope that as a team we can win gold.”
As far as long-term goals go, Lara’s aspirations remain high.
“I want to try and make the WNBA and play for the New York Liberty team one day,” she said.
“That’s my lifelong goal.”
With a fast-developing game, strong work ethic and a national tournament on the horizon, the promising player is already taking steps toward her dream.
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