Patience Benefits Salhia-Bernales Before University Commitment

On April 16, 2015 Yasmyne Salhia-Bernales (2.5-star, PG, Bill Crothers/North Toronto Huskies) of Markham, ON had signed her letter of intent to attend Robert Morris University of NCAA Division 1’s Northeast Conference.

“I feel like I’ve made the right decision”, said the Colonials newest signee. “Some people my say that it is a little late but, I didn’t feel rushed in my decision and I knew that this was the right school for me.”

Although better late than never when deciding on the school that is just right for you, Salhia-Bernales’ hand was pushed a little bit due to an injury last year. But, they say that everything happens for a reason. And for her, overcoming the injury and coming back and working hard, she had the good fortune of having favorable options presented to her to eventually choose from.

“Last year, I just didn’t find the right opportunities…they just weren’t the right schools. I wanted to be patient and find the right school…or the right opportunity to come. It’s that it just came this late.”

Before ultimately selecting Robert Morris, she also considered attending Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina and Marist.

In Salhia-Bernales, the Colonials acquire a player that is a consummate team player. This Point Guard is quite vocal and sees the floor well and is unselfish with the ball. She also has a very good ball I.Q. which comes in handy in reading what opponents are up to on either side of the court.

Seeing as team and chemistry are big for her, the decision to play for the Moon Township, PA school this coming Fall was made all the more clear on a recent visit. There, she had a great first-hand opportunity to see whether she would be able to bond with a group of girls, at a place that she will call home for the next four years.

“I got to practice with them. It looked like we’d play together for a year or so. There was instant chemistry. I thought that was important to see that ‘I’m confortable with these girls and we’re reading each other very well.”

But, it wasn’t only the on-court aspect that she made note of before coming to her decision.

“It’s a private school that is also really well known for their academics. And the have very small class [sizes]”, said the future Major in Psychology who also plans on Minoring in Criminal Justice. “You’d get to really know your professors really well and I find that really important for academics and I see myself succeeding academically like that.”

On the horizon, Salhia-Bernales is going to be looking to maintain her good academic standing at Bill Crothers, where she is averaging just above 85%. On the court, her and the North Toronto Huskies are poised to make a serious run at the JUEL rep league Championship where her team sits in second place with only a handful of games remaining. Then for her it will just be a matter of fine-tuning her game with some training prior to packing her bags for University life.

The well spoken, appreciative Salhia-Beranales couldn’t resist jumping at the chance to say thank you to the many that were instrumental in getting her to this point.

“Jodi Gram. She’s really played a role in making this decision. Throughout high school she’s always been there for me. I played Team Ontario with her in Grade 8 and Grade 9 so…she’s been my coach for a while and she’s really helped me through this. As well as my parents., my stepdad is actually one of my coaches. And definitely the North Toronto basketball program…I’ve really grown and been nurtured under their program with Jason Sealy and Dave Bethune. These guys have really helped to achieve what I have ached so far, so I just want to thank them all.”