Glenpool guard Mikayla Bonin will be looking to take on more of a leadership role in her senior season with the Lady Warriors.
“I have to be a good leader and lift up my teammates throughout the season,” said Bonin, who averaged 5 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals per game as a junior. “We have to be patient with each other, work together and make it to state and hopefully win.”
Glenpool went 18-10 overall last season and advanced to the Class 5A State Tournament under head coach Bobby Belveal. It was the first trip to a state tournament for the program since 1981.
Bonin, who will be one of just two seniors on this year’s roster, has worked on her communication skills on and off the court and has worked on gaining more and more confidence.
“Something that I’ve improved on a lot going into this season is communication on and off the court,” she said. “Throughout my high school career, I’ve really improved a lot on confidence in myself and my team.”
She says that one of her strengths is her patience on the court, not rushing shots and making the extra pass to give teammates better scoring opportunities. Bonin points back to the end of last season as a time she’ll never forget. It was following the Lady Warriors’ 64-54 win over Lawton MacArthur in a regional tournament championship game.
“It was such a great game. We all put a lot of work into getting there and even though we were down a player and got behind in the game early, we just kept playing,” Bonin said. “We played well as a team, everyone did their part, and it brought us all together.”
Bonin’s brother has been a big help to her growth in basketball. “I always watched [Andrew] play growing up, and he’s the reason I started in the first place,” she said. “He’s always there supporting me when he can and he’s very good at pointing out my mistakes but also how I can improve from them.”
Bonin, a straight A student, is unsure where she’ll attend college, but she plans on majoring in business and minoring in photography.