by By Dan Ninham
The No. 2 seed Page Lady Sand Devils were the 2019-20 Arizona State 3A Girls’ Runner-ups. The No. 1 seed Lady Sabercats of Sabino won 42-35 to improve to 28-0. One of the Lady Sand Devils continued her basketball journey in the junior college ranks.
Camryn Nockineneh, 18, was raised in LeChee, AZ, in a small community south of Page.
Camryn is a freshman basketball player at Wenatchee Valley College in Wenatchee, Washington. The college is a member of the Northwest Athletic Conference. It is the parent organization for thirty-six community colleges in Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.
“I am Diné (Navajo), and my clans are the tł’ízí lání (many goats people), and born for the kinyaa’áanii (towering house people),” said Camryn.
“In Page, the recreation center offered city leagues in soccer, flag football, softball and basketball,” said Camryn. “Growing up I competed in soccer and softball. I was sure I was going to play soccer in high school and basketball didn’t cross my mind at all. I realized how great my cousin sisters were in high school, and I decided to give basketball a shot. I finally caught interest in sixth grade.”
Competition started in city league in Page, AZ. Camryn became part of a traveling softball and basketball team. During her high school years, she played basketball and softball. During the off-season, she continued playing basketball with traveling teams.
“My freshman year of high school I made the varsity girls basketball team, and since then, I’ve played varsity until I graduated,” said Camryn. “Now I play college basketball for Wenatchee Valley College.”
“My greatest accomplishment was competing in the State Championship all four years and being a 2x state champ, and 2x state runner-up,” added Camryn.
Student-athletes tribal core values define who they are as an indigenous person.
“Remember who you are and where you come from,” said Camryn. “I am a Dinè woman and proud of my heritage. I love my brown skin and last name. I reside in LeChee, a small community on the Navajo Reservation. It is important to know who I am and where I come from because the foundation will help shape the future me.”
“Respect your elders and the environment,” said Camryn. “My parents, grandparents and aunts and uncles have truly taught me many lessons. In their stories, they share their experiences both good and bad. With this, they’ve instilled resiliency and determination in me.”
“Our earth and the rest of the environment are vital to our livelihood. I am grateful for the beautiful landscapes, the trees, and the moisture we receive. It is important to continue taking care of where we live,” added Camryn.
“Learn to stand on your own two feet and become self-sufficient,” said Camryn. “It is encouraged to get an education or training past high school. To earn a post-secondary degree or training or serve in the military, one could become self-sufficient. To earn an income and provide for oneself or family is considerably satisfying.”
Charlotte Nockideneh is a high school counselor. She was also a state high school basketball runner-up.
“My mom is my biggest mentor, she has made me into the person I am today,” said Camryn. “She’s built me into the athlete I am right now. She is the person who introduced basketball to me, and I have loved it since then. Mom is my toughest critic and my biggest supporter. She truly is the definition of being tough, she’ll yell at you, break her board on the sidelines, but it’s because she cares.”
“Within my high school basketball team we were taught that ‘once someone stops yelling at you, that’s when you should be worried.” “This meant that getting yelled at is a good thing. The person who is yelling at you expects more, and believes that you can in fact do more. And my mom was that person for me.”
Student-athletes prepare themselves for peak performance in holistic areas of during the pandemic: physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. A balance of all four will maximize their performance on and off the court, field, and classroom.
“The pandemic didn’t take its toll until after a month passed,” said Camryn. “At the beginning, I accepted it but also thought it would end in a month or two. As the pandemic progressed and even now, my emotions and mental health are affected. I have been frustrated, and I have dealt with this in numerous ways. One big thing that has helped me was reminding myself that I have a supportive family back in Arizona who believe in me. They’re my motivation. Spiritually, personal prayer has been very helpful, too. As an individual who is living far from home, I have surrounded myself with people who remain positive and who are goal oriented, this for sure helps me stay optimistic and keeps me positive.”
“While I was a senior in high school I had an injury that had me miss three games,” said Camryn. “I wanted to play with my team, and fight every battle with them. It was very hard to sit on the sidelines not dressed out, while watching my team battle on the court. During the rehabilitation process it was frustrating, a lot of ‘why me?’ questions were taking over.”
“Overall I had just wanted to be healthy and be back to playing. As the three games passed I was given the opportunity to play again, and it was very exciting. Through this time I still had a team, and coaches who loved me. Injuries happen, but you can’t let it take over you. I’ve learned through injury that you have to keep a positive mind even when times get tough,” added Camryn.
“I didn’t get to know Cam until her sophomore year,” said Page HS Assistant Coach Jenner David. “She was kind of quiet but had that instinct to become a leader. She was always working to be a better teammate and player. She took the extra time after practice to work on her skills, either with a coach or her brother. That extra time would pay off.”
“Her next two years she became more vocal. Asking her teammates to work harder than ever just as she began her trip to a couple of championships. Just watching her on the floor, being unselfish, and always encouraging and not placing blame as well as accepting whatever outcome and working hard to correct those mistakes,” added Jenner.
“She came into her own during the 2018-19 semi finals versus Tuba City,” said Jenner. “The team was not playing particularly but were working hard and down by one point with seconds left. Turnover after turnover, the team just couldn’t put it together. Coach called a time out.”
“Cam blurted out a few choice words with two of her teammates taking care of the ball. That’s when she took over the game and won it on their way to a championship game. I will never forget that moment,” added Jenner.
Rachel Goetz, head women’s basketball coach at Wenatchee Valley College, talked about her recent recruit Camryn: “Recruiting Camryn was an absolute pleasure! She was responsive, well spoken, and I could tell she was a competitor that loved the game of basketball. It didn’t take long before Camryn became a top recruiting priority for us. When she verbally committed and then later signed her letter of intent, as a coaching staff, we were ecstatic. Camryn capped off a great recruiting class for us and the skills she brought to the table were exactly what we needed in that last position we wanted to fill. We had waited for the perfect fit and we found it.”
“Camryn has been an incredible addition to our team and basketball family here at Wenatchee. Camryn has a very high basketball IQ. She has seamlessly fit into our system and there is no doubt her high IQ has aided her in that transition. Camryn has already earned the respect of her teammates. If there are questions or clarifications that need to be addressed Camryn has the ability to help her teammates better understand most things on the floor. She is naturally a quiet person but when she speaks her teammates listen.”
“Camryn is a great shooter and we are really looking forward to being able to draw on that strength as we gear up to play this season. We take a lot of pride in our defense and with Camryn’s length and athleticism she will cause some issues for our opponents,” added Rachel.
“Camryn is a dedicated student who has shown us that she can take challenging college level courses and succeed in them, even with online learning,” said Rachel. “We are so thankful that Camryn chose to become a WVC Knight.”
“We are thankful for all the support her Arizona fan base has already shown our program,” added Rachel.
Photo Credit: Dillon Nockineneh
Awesome Keep it up. Doing a good job shiyazhii…
Onward…!!! The light shines brightly.