CREDIT: MATT HISCOX PHOTOGRAPHY
Fanshawe women's basketball rookie, Jessica Jordan, had a successful season as a Falcon and experienced the Provincial and National Championships for the first time.

Jessica Jordan just finished off her rookie season on the Falcon women’s basketball team. The basketball team had a successful 2018- 2019 season and took home gold at the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) Championships and attended to the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Championships in Quebec where the Falcons tied for fifth place.

Jordan spoke with the Interrobang about her experience as a first year athlete and student at Fanshawe.

According to Jordan, she is currently in her first year of the biotechnology program and plays the guard position on the team.

“This season I came in as a rookie on a number one nationally ranked team,” Jordan said. “I was happy that I had lots of opportunities to play and become a better player.”

Although Jordan is a rookie on the Falcon team, she said she has been playing basketball since she was eight years old.

She played on her hometown travel team, the Chatham-Kent Wildcats, in the Juel Prep and Juel League for the Windsor Valiants and for the U19 Tecumseh Saints in the XBL league. She also played on her high school team in Chatham for four years.

“Being on the Fanshawe basketball team has meant so much to me,” Jordan said. “I was nervous to come to post-secondary school but my teammates and coaches made me feel like family.”

Jordan said she is proud of the countless hours of practice and dedication that the team put forth and it resulted in a successful season.

“The team has helped me improve as a player and made me become a better teammate as well,” Jordan said. “I have learned so many things and have been through unimaginable experiences by travelling around Ontario and going to Quebec.”

One experience that Jordan highlighted was competing at the OCAA and CCAA championships.

“Being able to play in front of a huge crowd like that was the best basketball atmosphere I have ever been in,” Jordan said. “It felt really good to be able to go to such a high-level stage as a rookie and play.”

Head coach of the women’s basketball team, Bill Carriere, spoke to the Interrobang about what it was like to have Jordan on the team.

“Jess is an absolute joy to coach and we know that when we recruited her last year,” Carriere said. “She is not only a strong player and a good athlete but she exemplifies the attributes we look for when we stress team first attitude”.

Carriere added that Jordan is extremely coachable which is an asset on the court as well as in life.

“Her best skills are shooting, ball handling and her ball fakes,” Carriere said. “This year she added depth to our skilled and experienced team while learning from our veterans.”

According to Carriere, Jordan averaged 14 minutes per game and was able to achieve in the top five spot on the team in terms of field goal percentage.

“We are very excited to see what the future holds for her as a Falcon because she will take on a bigger role for us next season,” Carriere said.

Jordan said that Carriere helped her develop her skills and he ensured to make the season fun for the team.

“Coach Bill [Carriere] has helped me so much this season,” Jordan said. “Besides learning new offences, he has helped me improve little things about my game like defensive positioning and post-entry passing.”

In the future, Jordan said she would like to pursue a job in the food and agricultural section of biotechnology as well as continue playing basketball in a women’s league.

“This season I have learned that to be one of the best you have to put in the work on your own time,” Jordan said. “Nothing is given to you and you have to work for what you want. When it comes to high pressure situations, it is very important to stay composed and rely on what you know.”