A high school athlete hopeful of playing their sport in college may be lucky to get a single offer. HHS senior basketball player Lane Crowe currently has seven.
Lane started recruiting relatively late, receiving her first offer going into her junior year. Her current offers include Crowley’s Ridge College, Emory, Agnes Scott, Sewanee, Berry, Shorter and Snead State Community College. As she is leaning towards Emory as of right now, Crowe is still unsure and wants to fairly evaluate her choices before committing. Crowe said the most important factors she is looking for are the quality of the school, a decent program and good funding.
“The quality of the school is definitely important because college sets you up for the rest of your life,” Crowe said. “You have to go to a good school.”
Crowe started playing basketball in kindergarten after her parents got her into it. She says she decided to just keep doing it simply because she enjoyed it. Her biggest piece of advice for younger players aspiring to play at her level: do not give up.
“Just keep working,” Crowe said. “Get in your reps and practice for whatever sport you do. Make good connections. That’s important.”
Crowe’s greatest strength as a player is her ability to rebound and her outside shooting. Lane says getting on with the shooting machine as much as she can helps with developing this skill.
Jason Harlow, who’s coaching Crowe in his first season at Homewood after leaving Chelsea, emphasized her impact on their team. Harlow describes Crowe as “a really well-rounded player capable of playing multiple spots,” and believes she will certainly play a huge role for their upcoming season.
Her coach is excited to see what she has to offer this season because “she is capable of big things”. He says her ability to quickly adapt to a new system will be extremely beneficial for her.
“I think her length and outside shooting will translate very well at the next level,” Harlow says. “Her high basketball IQ will allow her to pick up a new system and a completely different pace very quickly.”
In preparation for the next level, her coach has suggested she makes some changes.
“We have asked her to step up from a leadership standpoint this season and to play downhill more this year than she has in the past. In college she will be expected to score at all three levels.”
Lane is grateful for her coaches and teammates’ help during the recruitment process.
“My coaches were very good at reaching out, speaking up and advocating for who I am as a personal player,” she said. “And my teammates just kept me up with it, helped me learn all the hard parts.”
Balancing sports and academics can be difficult at times. Lane manages to balance these by using any free time she has during or outside the season to prioritize school. With a busy schedule like hers, it’s hard to maintain a set routine for her academics throughout her career.
“I don’t necessarily have the schedule to set aside a block of two, three hours to work,” she said. “I use any of the downtime I do have. It’s not a lot.”
