Aurora’s Lewis off to Laurentian University

May 20, 2021 · 0 Comments

Aurora native and basketball centre Jasmine Lewis has agreed to join Laurentian University to study Psychology with hopes to become a French teacher.

Lewis had a choice between Laurentian University and West Virginia, but ultimately decided to remain on Canadian soil.

She confirmed her decision to attend Laurentian boiled down to academics.

“Because I want to become a French teacher, I saw Laurentian is a bilingual campus,” Lewis said. “It really came down to the academics part because Ohio Valley didn’t have the necessary courses to become a French teacher.”

From a basketball standpoint, head coach Jason Hurley is no stranger. Hurley was a teammate of one of Lewis’ father’s friends back in the day.

Heading into this program without a scholarship, Lewis says she is excited to be heading to Sudbury in the fall to play basketball in this competitive program. Especially since she never began playing basketball immediately when she was younger. It was a sport that grew on her.

“Basketball was not my first sport. I did gymnastics for a year or two when I was three. I tried lacrosse, I tried soccer, but basketball was the one that really stuck for me,” Lewis said.

She began playing basketball in Aurora at the age of five with IEM. She was immediately drawn to the sport’s dynamics and playing the game felt so easy. She was much taller than her opponents. She had the ability to shoot the ball and dribble by defences.

Seven years into house league, Lewis moved on to rep with IEM. She even joined her elementary school team at Lester B. Pearson Public School. Growing up a shy girl, it was axiomatic that rep basketball had sprung her out of her comfort zone.

“I do feel like it was easier to make friends and meet new people. When I was playing house league, all my games and practices were in the area. When I began playing rep people were coming from all sorts of different places and backgrounds. It was easier to meet people this way.”

Lewis garnered attributes of a leader. In school, she was the go-to player and one other teammates leaned on. That transitioned in rep and her talents became noticeable enough to attract Next Up Hoops to invite the young girl to play AAU down south for one summer.

“I remember I had a tournament in Atlanta. I was very nervous. American players were a lot bigger and a lot more aggressive than what I was used to,” Lewis described.

“I remember this one game, three seconds left on the clock before halftime. I was about to shoot a three. I was hesitant whether to shoot it or not. I did and it went in. From that moment on I felt a lot more confident and wasn’t doubting myself.”

Returning to Canada from that summer, Lewis attended Aurora High School and in Grade Nine, she joined the Vaughan Panthers rep program. Throughout her four years, she also played for the Scarborough Blues as well.

Now, the 6-foot-forward is ready to move out of the house and onto the university basketball court to continue competing.

Lewis says she sees herself coaching young children one day following her university career. A teacher by day. A coach in the afternoon.

But looking back just before taking the next step, Lewis is most proud she remained in the sport for this long.

“I’m most proud of myself for sticking with basketball. I’m not the type of person to give up on stuff. Since I played basketball my entire life, I didn’t want to throw it down the drain. I want to leave my mark and want to be a great example for my younger cousins and my friends. If you really enjoy something don’t give up because it can really pay off in the end.”

By Robert Belardi