Making it onto a varsity team during freshman year can be a challenge, but being named a team captain and receiving a college offer as a freshman is a bit more rare. Freshman Sofia Read has had many firsts in her freshman season as a Blue Hawk and looking forward to even more achievements in the future.

After playing her first season in basketball nearly eight years ago, Read knew the sport was for her. She grew up playing the sport since second grade, but began playing tournament basketball and on different teams across  Texas and Oklahoma in sixth grade. 

“When I started playing more tournaments, it started to become big in my life, and I really enjoyed it,” Read said. 

Over the summer of 2023, Read went to the University of the Incarnate Word women’s basketball camp. She was able to practice basketball drills, play competitive basketball and develop new skills as a player. 

“My favorite basketball memory is when I went to the UIW camp, and I was lucky enough to get my first division one offer from there,” Read said. “And it was pretty big and exciting for me.

Given Read is a freshman on the team, her teammates’ and coach’s perception of her has been influenced by her driven mindset and diligent work ethic. She continues to help the team with its seasonal goals.  

“Every day she comes in and works extremely hard during practice, works extremely hard outside of practice,”Kenna Mays, head basketball coach,  said. “She does a lot of extra work, extra training and all that translates onto the court whenever we play.”

Sofia Read has a personality that others might not see outside a friendship. Freshman Aliyana Sanchez talks about her sweet personality when being around her. 

“We joke around all the time in the locker room, literally just screaming at the top of our lungs with songs and stuff,” Sanchez said. 

Sophomore Kenna Kucholtz talks about the moment when she met Read and how the both of them became friends after a basketball scrimmage during their seventh-eight grade season.

“She’s very, hard working, but she’s also very humble,” Kucholtz said, “she knows she’s good, but she’s not going to show everybody else that she’s better than you without just performing well.”

Mays comments on the experience when she first met Read and on the performance during her eight grade year of basketball. Mays noticed that Read gives a lot of effort in both the middle school and later in the high school level.

“As long as she continues to work hard and remain coachable and continue to get better,” Mays said, “she’ll have a lot more college interest for sure in these next few years.”

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is college level athletics for high school student athletes. These students can be recruited by colleges and universities throughout the three college athletic divisions. 

“So student athletes can be recruited and showcased, at an early age, usually around middle school,” Mays said. “If you’re a top prospect, college coaches will come and watch you play in the summer times or during school ball.” 

After a new NCAA rule regarding college offers passed in 2019, colleges are now required to only send offers during a student’s junior year of high school. 

“I know the colleges before were able to talk to me and call me because I was in middle school,” Read said.

Currently, Read has two offers to play basketball in college. Her goal is to hopefully play in college, and someday start in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA).

“I just feel like the game itself is really fun and it is really enjoyable to watch and to play,” Read said.