Steele Venters is Ellensburg’s hometown hero
CHENEY, Wash. (BVM) — Coming out of high school, it’s typical for future college students to seek out universities that are far from home. The idea of meeting new people, exploring different places and escaping the grasps of parental control tend to entice young adults. The sheer thought of staying close to home doesn’t always come off as the most exhilarating college experience.
But for EWU men’s basketball player Steele Venters, he represents his hometown of Ellensburg with pride.
Ever since high school, Venters has been actively involved in the community. During the local rodeo show, he and his teammates would volunteer to help with the garbage pick-up. He also holds an annual basketball camp in the summer for middle schoolers looking to improve their game. Both activities keep Venters in tune with Ellensburg, something he’s valued greatly since arriving in Cheney as a freshman at EWU.
“I try to do as much as I can in the community,” Venters said.
Of course, he’s always there for the people closest to him. When his friend’s father was diagnosed with cancer, Venters helped set up an awareness fundraiser in support. Members of the community offered their generosity through donations, as the campaign known as “Brady Strong” grew notoriety throughout Ellensburg.
“We set up an organization to raise awareness and money for him,” Venters said. “We even had an event where he came down to the floor before a basketball game.”
Now, heading into his redshirt freshman season, Venters has quite the fan base behind him. Family and friends have reached out to request tickets for Eagles’ home games, something that wasn’t possible last year due to COVID-19. While his family was able to attend EWU’s NCAA tournament game against Kansas, Venters is excited to see more familiar faces in Reese Court next year.
He also expects to have a larger role than he did in 2020.
“My expectations for myself are to start and have a big role on this team,” Venters said.
Venters played an average of 9.6 minutes in 17 games last season. He received limited opportunities in the postseason as well, appearing in one Big Sky tournament game against the University of Montana. In the NCAA tournament, he checked into the final seconds of EWU’s 93-84 loss to Kansas.
But under new head coach David Riley, who recruited Venters coming out of Ellensburg High School, the 2021 campaign is shaping up to be a different story. Riley has spent the past seven seasons as an assistant coach at EWU, bringing a sense of familiarity to this year’s Eagles squad. His style of play also favors Venters, a shoot-at-will type of offense designed to maximize players’ potential.
“Dave ran a lot of the offense last year, so I don’t see much changing,” Venters said. “He likes to let us play and make our reads and not run as many sets.”
Not everyone from last year’s team had the same feelings towards the culture change at EWU, however. Aside from Riley taking the head coach position, other leadership changes at the university have caused athletes from a number of sports to reconsider their commitment to their respective teams. The men’s basketball program was no exception to this, as the team will head into next season without two impact players from 2020 in Tanner and Jacob Groves.
And while he considered the transfer portal, Venters knew his heart belonged close to home.
“The tournament gave a lot of kids an opportunity to go elsewhere and they saw that as the best decision for themselves,” Venters said. “But I’m staying at Eastern, I made that decision a long time ago.”
With high expectations, Venters hopes to accomplish his goals in front of his hometown faithful this winter in Cheney.
