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Leading The Pack: Amaya West of Nevada women’s basketball
Amaya West finds her leadership ability in the midst of a challenging and rewarding season. (Courtesy: Nevada Athletics)

Leading The Pack: Amaya West of Nevada women’s basketball

RENO, Nev. (BVM) — The basketball season for the University of Nevada, Reno women’s team has shown impactful challenges. From the hardships COVID-19 has presented, to the adaptation of a new team, veteran of the team Amaya West does not let any challenges get in her way. West was recently recognized as the Wolf Pack student-athlete of the week and has the stats to match. She described the impact this year has made on her and the women of Nevada basketball.

West is from Mesa, Ariz., and has played basketball since her freshman year of high school. Her progression to becoming a collegiate student-athlete led her straight to Nevada.

“The reason I chose Nevada was because of basketball for the most part, even though I valued my education,” West explained. “For me, I loved interacting with the coaching staff at the time. So it would just seem like a natural fit and it wasn’t like too far away from home.”

Since her time at Nevada, West has received recognition for her academic excellence. In her first year, she was named Mountain West Scholar-Athlete and part of the Mountain West All-Academic team. 

“Honestly, it is a matter of balance,” West said when explaining how she has reached success on and off the court. “I know a lot of times I can be wrapped up in basketball and just focus on the game, but in those moments I tell myself, ‘Hey, you need to put more time into studying this because I know I am not understanding something as much as I should.’”

The Nevada women’s team has recently had cancellations and postponed games. Like most athletes competing at the collegiate level, COVID has impacted its season unlike any other.

“I wasn’t sure if I even wanted to play this season,” West said. “I was really worried about COVID during the preseason. I didn’t know how travel was going to be. We were all unsure of how the practice would be. We all were questioning what we will have to do if someone got sick, and I struggled in terms of competing and getting into the season.”

At the beginning of preseason leading into the fall semester, The University of Nevada implemented a practice week schedule for each athletic team. They were each provided a six-week window to use the athletic facility. 

When asked to describe the team when these policies were placed and how the culture grew for the team, West stated versatility. 

“You never know what you’re going to get from us, you never know who’s going to lead in points or who’s going to lead the rebounding game,” West said. “But in terms of practice, we’re just trying to focus, especially with having to play a day in between each game. You get maybe two, three, four days to learn about your competitor, and once that time hits like, you have to just be ready to play two whole games against them.” 

Given the time West has been on the team, she has tapped into her leadership abilities.

“I try to be more vocal in practice, I can get frustrated at times and I have learned especially this year, finding my voice on the team is what has helped me.”  

Overall the women’s basketball team is 9-8, going back-to-back from wins to losses these past few weeks. West continues to lead in her scoring output. In the team’s latest game against Boise State, she scored 14 points in a 66-44 win.

“I will say, the competitiveness for our team is there,” West said. We have a lot of new players, whether that’s freshmen or transfers, so it’s been hard to figure out how the team operates. It took us a long time. We are a young team and we are continuing to find who we are.” 

UNR women’s basketball will continue its season with the Mountain West Championship scheduled to begin March 7.