For sophomore guard Mikayla Venson, family means everything. When it came to choosing a college basketball program, one of the main reasons Virginia flew to the top of her list was its proximity to her close-knit family.
In addition to the closeness to her biological family, Venson was drawn to the Cavaliers because of the “family atmosphere” it provided her right on the court at JPJ and all across Grounds.
“I just really got a family vibe, and I loved [it],” Venson said about her recruiting visits. “I came countless times to games and just to visit the campus, and I loved it every time I came. I loved the players [and] the coaches.”
To find women whom you consider sisters is a challenging task, but Venson says she has found over a dozen of them on the Virginia squad. In particular, she has found guidance and sisterhood in senior guard Faith Randolph.
“I have learned a lot from [Randolph] on and off the court,” Venson said. “[I’ve learned] how to approach the game, how to be that leader and be vocal when I need to [and how to] be that positive influence to everyone.”
Venson, who has been with the program for nearly two years, is far and away the Cavaliers’ main scorer, currently averaging just over 15 points per game. With Randolph out since early January after breaking her thumb, Venson has really had to “step up [her] game even more… and [be] a leader.”
Being that leader has meant doing much more than scoring a few extra points every game. Venson said one of the biggest way she has had to grow since her days as a rookie is becoming something of a big sister to the freshman and “[talk] to [them] when they need me and being that positive role model that they want to look up to.”
In every family, there is a mother. For the Cavaliers’ family, the mother figure is undoubtedly Coach Joanne Boyle.
“[Coach Boyle] wants you to… succeed off the court and really help you grow as a basketball player and a woman,” said Venson. “I love sitting down with her about anything — my grades, how school is going, how basketball… is going. So, she really talks to me with a lot of wisdom, and I really love sitting down with her.”
Having a family structure to lean on is important when things, such as ACC play for the Cavaliers, are not always as successful as one hopes.
“Everything doesn’t always go as we suspect,” Venson said. “We go through a lot of adversity, but I think at the end of the day, the will to fight through things and have each other’s backs [is what gets us through].”
For Venson, her personal goals for the rest of the season are to win all remaining ACC games and go into the ACC Tournament confident.
“[We have] passion for the game and want to get better everyday,” Venson said. “I just want us to finish out confident and have fight in us.”
Despite high hopes for the remainder of their season, Venson turned to the mantra of Coach Boyle: “it is more than just basketball.”
“[We just have to] know that we are sisters at the end of the day,” Venson said.
Virginia faces off against Syracuse Thursday night at John Paul Jones Arena.
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