Less than a month..........

Hey everyone!

My name is Audrey Smolik and I will be a senior this year at BW. It still hasn't sunk it yet that it is my last year here. Word of advice to everyone....time FLIES. So enjoy every moment you have at BW because before you know it you will be old like me! haha anyways, I am from Strongsville which is about 15 minutes away from BW. I live with my mom, dad, younger brother, and our new family member Emma who is our 3 year old Saint Bernard :)  I also have an older sister but she is in grad school at the University of Kentucky and currently lives down there. This summer has been one of the biggest learning experiences for me. My full time job is babysitting/nannying for a family in my neighborhood. They are pretty much my second family. But on top of that, I was a head coach for an aau team. Our name was SMAC ICE. We traveled to PA twice, Kentucky, and Indiana. It was one of the most amazing learning experiences for me. I never really considered coaching but after having spent weeks with those girls, I may change my mind. They are a wonderful, funny, goofy, dedicated group of girls that helped me grow as a person. Besides my job and coaching, my summer has consisted of hanging out with friends (a lot of catching up with friends from high school), workouts (of course), family time, and shopping. I spend way too much time and money shopping. I am so excited to meet all of the freshman! I have met a few and cannot wait to meet the rest. Prepare yourselves, our team can be crazy :) I hope everyone has had a fun summer so far. Enjoy the rest of it because school is coming up fast! Stay safe!

Audrey
#24

The first picture is myself with our dog Emma :) The second picture is of the team I coached!

Going into Sophomore Year!

Hi everyone, my name's Sydney Clark, and I don't have any cool nicknames like Keeks or Grandma but I usually just go by Syd. haha I will be a sophomore this coming up year and I am so excited to get back to school. Here's a little about myself. This summer I just have been working at a salon in Brecksville, Ohio as a receptionist and working out up at school. I can't believe it's almost August already, the summer flew by. I didn't go on any vacations or anything but I did take a trip to Cedar Point on BW day and road the Millennium Force for the first time ! I was so scared the whole time in line but I was so glad that I road it after. My major is Public Relations and I hope to minor in marketing. I also have an awesome internship as an event manger this year which I am looking forward too, while I juggle working at the rec's smoothie bar as well.

Our team is like no other. I have made so many memories this year and friends that will last forever. We have a great bond on the court and off. The junior class can get a little crazy, but we all still love them. I cannot wait for our trip to Puerto Rico especially since I'm Puerto Rican and most of my aunts and uncles were born there. It's always been a dream of mine to go visit and now I get to play basketball there! I'm not the biggest fan of flying but I do love going to the beach.

I'm really excited for this season  to start this year. We have a lot of great players coming back and some awesome freshman as well. Hope you all enjoy what is left of the summer, can't wait to be back at school and I will see everyone soon.

Love Sydney #4

Hi Everyone!

Hey! I am Katie Smith (the one that lives 15 minutes away) from Fairview Park. I will be a freshman this upcoming year and am very excited to start. I will be majoring in Pre - Physical Therapy and Athletic Training. Katie Swanson and I will be living in the new Saylor hall dorms together so im really excited about that! We are just going to have to figure out some nicknames. I just started a volunteer job at Orthopedic Associates in their physical therapy area, mostly just to be around the things in that profession. I love to be on the lake in the summer. My grandpa has a boat on Lake Erie so I love to be out there either tubing, jet skiing, or just going on a boat ride. Also this summer I went to Hilton Head Island (my favorite place) with my family. Chipotle is my favorite place to eat, so I will be making lots of trips there.  I love to travel so I can’t wait for our Puerto Rico trip! I am really looking forward to getting to be apart of the team and help the team succeed in any way that I can!

HEYYYYY from Illinois :)

Well ive never blogged before but here goes nothing! My name is Katie Swanson and im going to be a freshman this coming year. I live in Elgin, IL which is about 6 hours from BW. My birthday is August 20th which is the day I will be leaving for BW. Yes....im a youngster....I will be turning 18 :) Ohhh I heard most of the girls can only tell me and Katie Smith apart by "Katie from IL" and "Katie from 15 mins away".....that needs to change! haha. I will also be rooming with Katie, which is going to be awesome and I cant wait to move into the dorm! Well anyways, I want to go into veterinary medicine so I'll probably major in biology or some type of science.....don't really know yet. I live with my mom, Lenora, my dad, David, and my brother, Matt, who is going to be a junior at Ball State University in Indiana. AND I also live with my wonderful dog, Maxie. She is a golden retriever and is 9 years old but has cancer and isn't doing too well...  But getting away from that subject, I just started working at a local animal clinic in the beginning of summer! MY FIRST JOB...uhhh that was scary at first. Have had many experiences both good and bad and many stories to tell...so if you want to know about life working at a animal clinic just ask! Today was a bit of a shock at work cuz one of my coworkers got bit in the face by a dog...shes okay but has a couple holes in her chin and neck. Anyways, besides working at the animal clinic, I have been playing in a basketball summer league with a local college but that just ended....lets just say my team didn't have height besides me and one other girl. What else? I haven't really done much this summer other than work and play basketball. I'm trying to get my mom to go up to Wisconsin the weekend before my birthday and go fishing on one of the lakes! Well that's all I can think of to say. Cant wait to be at BW and become really close with the team :) See you guys soon!!


Katie Swanson


*tried to upload a pic of Maxie but it wouldn't work :(

Marissa "Mo Mo" Hellisz

Hey everyone! My name is Marissa Hellisz but to the team I’m known as “Mo Mo” (thanks to Janaya for coming up with it last year). I will be a junior this year and it really is hard to believe how quickly my time at BW has gone so far! I have a double major in Pre-Physical Therapy and Exercise Science in order to become a physical therapist in the near future. Also I’m a multi-sport athlete who competes in both basketball and track so I have a very busy schedule during the school year. I went to Normandy high school in Parma (which is the opposite way of BW on Bagley) and I’m a commuter because I live about 10-15 minutes from BW depending on traffic. Some more things about me, I love seeing movies so if you ever want to know if a movie is good or worth seeing ask me, because I’ve probably seen it or I’m going to see it. Another thing is I love super heroes, batman especially, I have some super hero shirts you’ll probably see me wearing throughout the year. I also love Nike that’s pretty much the only brand you’ll see me wear and I was so happy this past year our shoes were Nike! The upper classmen also know me for my Nike tank tops that I wear to our shoot arounds and they tease me because I have the same shirt in more than a dozen different colors haha.

This summer has been the best one for me so far because I’ve been able to do a lot of things I enjoy doing. Basketball is something I absolutely love so for me preparing for next year’s basketball season (by lifting, shooting and playing pick-up games) is something I enjoy and get excited about. I know everyone on the team is working hard to be the best because we know what it takes to get to that next level. I’m so excited for next season and can’t wait for all our hard work to pay off. Besides working on my game, I’ve been able to catch up with a few of my best friends who went away to college and that I’ve been with since grade school! I’m an adventurous person so we go hiking to many different places, go on bike rides, swim and just do things to enjoy the outdoors. I’m a very active person so I always find something fun to keep me busy. When I’m not hanging out and catching up with friends, I’m working a few part time jobs and doing my two summer classes. I had the opportunity to meet a few of the freshmen who are awesome and I can’t wait to meet the rest of them! :) I’m looking forward to seeing everyone again and I’m so pumped to see where this year is going to take us!

Marissa Hellisz #22       

Hello everyone! My name is Cassandra Midlik and I will be a freshman here at BW this coming year. Cassandra is my full name but people normally just call me Casey or Case. I graduated from Medina High School this year and I am very excited to be apart of the BW family. My goal is to Major in Pre Physical Therapy and minor in Exercise Science. I grew up in a family that strongly supports basketball, my mom has been a coach for over 20 years, along with siblings that use to play. Along with playing basketball I use to run Cross Country until I tore my ACL the summer before my Junior year. I also spend my summers at my family's lake house on Chippewa Lake. There, I ski on the Chippewa Lake Water Ski Show Team. It is a competitive water ski team where we travel to different states to compete at tournaments. We also do free shows in Norton every Wednesday night! My whole family skis and has been skiing on the team for 15 years. I am thrilled to be apart of this team! I cant wait to meet everyone and for the season to start!

Summer 2014 ❤️

Hey everyone! My name is Mackenzie but I usually get called Kenzie, Kenz, Kenie, Ken, or everyone's favorite grandma. For the freshman don't listen to them I'm not a grandma 😉 anyways I will be a sophomore this year and I can't believe my freshman year is already over!! It went by extremely fast! Becoming a yellow jacket was one of the best decisions I ever have made! Not only was basketball so much fun but the friends and the relationships you make are irreplaceable. Every team will have arguments and not always get along 100% but I truly believe we have something special as a team and for the freshman I think that you will really enjoy getting to know everyone and creating the relationships that will last a lifetime.  I have had quite a busy summer so far. I have been babysitting for two families and working at an ice cream place but I got to quit that yesterday which was awesome bc it was just a waste of time!! I have been working out and hanging out with my friends and boyfriend and enjoying my family as well. I recently just got home from a two week trip to Italy so that was an experience of a lifetime! My family moved at the beginning of the year last year from the house that I have lived in my whole life and it was one of the hardest things to do but now I am finally feeling at home again which is wonderful! I am very excited to come back to school and see everyone and meet everyone who is joining our team! I hope everyone enjoys their last month in a half of summer and I will see you all soon!!

Hey everyone! My names Geena Gabriel ( they call me G) and I will be a freshman at BW. I went to high school at Pymatuning Valley (where Jon York went) and I live in Andover, OH. I played soccer, basketball, and track and choosing basketball for my college sport wasn't an easy decision! It's crazy to think that I'm a freshman in college and just graduated high school!! It feels like yesterday I was just so nervous to even begin high school. haha. I am really excited to become apart of this team and I am glad to be a yellowjacket! I plan on majoring in Exercise Science and to minor in Coaching! I just love being around sports so i feel this would be the best option for me! My summer so far has been very hectic. From going to the gym, spending time with my family, getting things ready for my vacation to Outer Banks!! and ready for my open house is just crazy! But managing all that is what keeps me going because i just HATE being bored! haha. But on July 28th i get to go out and visit my dad in Colorado, i barely get to see him do to our busy schedules so im really excited to go!!! The only bad part is is that i have to fly there all by myself and i've never flown on a plane before! But overall im really excited to begin school and just to get to know everyone on the team. Im looking forward to this upcoming season and i hope everyone has a safe summer!!
Geena Gabriel