Bryndie Ballam: transitioning from Virginia to USU Eastern in Price

This archived article was written by: Jada Clark

took naps for way too long and my parents had a lot of trouble waking me up.”
to tell a lie if she doesn’t want to hurt somebody’s feelings.
Bryndie Ballam
“My biggest self-doubt is not being good enough or not reaching my full potential.” Ballam confesses.
Regarding her future, Ballam says, “I still have no idea what I want to major in. I like helping people and being around sports though, so I’m sure I will find something I am passionate about soon.”
grew a foot, the players are much taller.” Ballam speaks on the difficulties of being a student athlete, “Traveling a lot makes it more difficult to keep up with school work, but I bring my homework with me to our games and my teachers are always willing to help me get caught up.” The funniest moment Ballam’s had with the team was when one of the players, “let one rip” during their warm ups before a game, and the whole team nearly passed out. “It was so funny.” Ballam comments. “I like my coaches a lot more because they have a higher expectation and push us more in practice, which makes us bet-
Bryndie Ballam is a guard for the women’s basketball team at Utah State University Eastern.
“If money wasn’t an object, I would travel the world with my family.” Bal- lam says.
Ballam’s a long way from home, as she is originally from Virginia. She has seven people in her family: an older brother and an older sister, as well as two younger sis- ters. “I am close with my family. At first I was really homesick, but have adjusted. I still miss them a lot but talk to them every week which makes me happy.”
If Ballam could be allergic to anything, she’d choose junk food as a whole, so she’d be healthier.
“I have grown a lot as a player from high school. My senior year was my first year back after tearing my ACL. It was a really hard year for me. I feel like I have all my strength back now and have been playing a lot better.”
Working out every day is the most satisfying thing Ballam does every day. “It gives me energy for the day and it makes me feel good about myself.”
Ballam’s strengths and weakness of the game, she says, “As a player I think I get along with everyone on the team and am able to motivate them. However my weakness is that I tend to get discour- aged easily.”
Ballam admits it was difficult moving to Eastern. “Moving here was difficult because I live in Virginia, but all of my relatives live out here so it’s nice to have them around.”
One thing Ballam wishes that would happen tomorrow is that she does well on all of her tests.
“Like most people, I try to forgive others and not hold grudges, but it isn’t always easy for me.” Although Ballam isn’t much of a fan of tattoos, she says if she were to get one, she’d get a small tattoo, where no one would be able to see.
“I keep myself motivated during the games because I am a competitive person, and I love playing basketball.”
ter players.”
The strengths and weaknesses of the
Ballam is most proud of her parents, because they have done so much for her. Growing up Ballam’s constant nap tak- ing is what got on her parents the most. “I
Ballam is usually described as friendly, and can’t overlook the characteristic of kindness in others. She is most likely
The biggest difference from high school basketball is the pace of the game, Ballam says, “College basketball is a quicker pace. It also seems like everyone
women’s basketball team, Ballam says, “I think our team has a lot of potential. Our biggest weakness right now is learning how to play with everyone. We are still adjusting because we are a new team. We have so much talent on our team so we will be successful.”