Written by Destiny Henschel
The Women’s Head Basketball Coach, Lauren Martin is planning to lead the team to success. Her mindset is strong, while she consistently focuses on women’s empowerment. Throughout her first year of coaching the Concordia University Chicago Cougars, Martin expressed she did not perform as well as she had hoped during the 2018-2019 season. However, she does plan for the Cougars to play better this year.
Last year the Cougar’s record was lower than it has been in the past. Martin
mentions “with a new coach,” the team has to readapt in a way. With a new way of coaching, Martin had to earn the trust of the new team. All of the players were able to engage with the new coach’s fun spirit and feministic attitude. Her strong demeanour can easily rub off on anyone, especially her team.
Her interest for the sport came from the age five. Martin witnessed Michael Jordan play on TV and she knew she had to play, too. From that day on, she became what she called “a girly tomboy,” who loved wearing pink with her basketball athletic shorts.
Martin’s love for coaching came from a young age, where she began helping coach in her high school years. Eventually she played in college North Park University, continuing to assistant coach, and she confirmed that she had “always been obsessed with basketball.” Even when she attended North Park, Martin experienced the specialness Concordia University Chicago had to offer. So when she saw the opportunity at CUC, she knew she had to apply to be a head coach. Not only is her love for basketball firing her need to coach, but Martin knew she wanted to make a difference in people’s lives. She always wanted the ability to impact and unite strong women on and off the court. Though she appears tough, Martin always intends the best for her players.
Another aspect of coaching Martin fell in love with was her ability to guide Women to their own future success. Because she went through all of the same steps as the girls are currently going through, she is able to perfectly guide her team to their own betterness. Martin’s passion includes helping her team work towards the end goal — graduation. So when her team walks across the graduation stage, Martin wants them to be comfortable, as she states being “prepared and have this dynamic background and basketball helps with that.”
To conclude, the excitement of the year is coming as the CUC Women’s Basketball Team begins to work towards their success. Martin ends with inspiring words, “I think that this group is special in their own, but when they start becoming that cohesive group, can be special together.”
Their first game of the season will take place Tuesday, November 12th, at 7:00 p.m. at Rockford University, in Rockford, Illinois. The Cougars will compete against the Regents.
