by By Dan Ninham (Oneida)
The University of Montana Lady Grizzlies basketball team recently received a verbal commitment from one of the top point guards in the country.
L’Tia Lawrence, is Assiniboine and Standing Rock Sioux and she belongs to the Nabé Wakà Wiya (Holy Hand Woman). Her parent’s are Marlin and Bethany Lawrence and the family lives on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation in Montana.
L’Tia is a 5’8 senior point guard for the Harlem HS Wildcats. She led her team this season with 17 points per game and last season she averaged 19.1 points per game.
“Our high school basketball team has made the first appearance in school history at state my junior year and our second appearance came the following year, my senior season,” said L’Tia. “My team and I worked so hard to get to that level and we were cut short due to covid-19. We were all heartbroken when we heard the news of the state tournament being cancelled. For basketball, I was First Team All Conference freshman through senior year and All State sophomore through senior year. I was All State my freshman, sophomore, and senior year in cross-country. For track, I was All State in the 1600m and 3200m my freshman and junior year.”
“Shoni Schimmel influenced me because she was a native that came from a reservation and was successful in her ball career,” said L’Tia. “She made it all the way to the WNBA through her hard work. When I was in the sixth grade my family and I took a trip to Louisville, Kentucky to watch Shoni and Jude Schimmel play on Shoni’s senior night. It was amazing to watch them play and I am super thankful to have gotten to experience that. Being there in that atmosphere made me want to work harder so I can one day experience that myself.”
“Kobe Bryant influenced me because of his work ethic and his relentless mindset he had to keep striving to be better,” said L’Tia.
“My dad, who was also my coach, influenced me the most,” said L’Tia. “He was the one who taught me what hard work means and nothing comes easy. He took my team around to tournaments growing up and worked with me countless hours in the gym growing up and I am truly thankful for that. I don’t think I would be the athlete I am today without him pushing me to be my best and never to settle.”
“I try to keep conditioned year round,” said L’Tia. “I do strength training three times a week and try to keep up on my craft by getting shots up and keeping up with my ball handling and footwork drills. My younger brother, Daniel, plays ball too and we push each other. Our one-on-one games get pretty competitive, especially because we are siblings and do not take it easy on one another. We both do cross country and track and he pushed me in running as well. My older brother, Isaiah, used to play ball with Daniel and me and it would get pretty rough. He would go hard on us, especially when I would play him one on one. He would make me work for all my shots and since he was bigger than me he would use that to his advantage. He never took it easy and at times I would get frustrated but in a way to where I wanted to go harder. I’m glad I have someone like my brothers to compete against and push me because it only made me stronger as an individual.”
“I need to improve on everything,” said L’Tia. “You can never know enough because there is always more to learn and improve on. That goes for sports and in life.”
“During a stressful game situation I just try to focus on what needs to be done whether it’s making a pass during a play, making a defensive hustle play, getting a rebound, or cheering on my teammates,” said L’Tia. “I stay focused because I don’t want the feeling of regret after the game of what I could’ve or should’ve done. I give it my all and try not to let mistakes effect me because in the game of basketball of course there will be mistakes. You just have to learn to play through them no matter what kind of situation you may be in.”
“I am staying as well as I can be during this pandemic,” said L’Tia. “We have been in quarantine since the Montana Class B State Tournament games were canceled back on March 13. We haven’t had school for almost a month now but our school has been handing out work on the bus weekly and we also have work assigned to us online. To pass by time my family and I watch movies, stay active by playing ball on my court in the backyard, going for a run on the back roads, and my schoolwork also keeps me busy. We are doing our part to keep my family and others safe and to help with the spread of covid-19 by social distancing. We hope there is a cure for it soon and that all families are staying safe and praying for the families affected by the virus.”
“I would like to thank everyone who has supported me throughout the years,” said L’Tia. “This includes my family, coaches, teammates, community, and especially God because I wouldn’t be where I am today without him.”
Photo Credit: Randy Perez, Blaine County Journal
Cool story. I lived in Montana. I’m Navajo. My youngest son played Basketball for Fergus schools and he was the center. We moved back home. Good luck in college. Rooting for you forever. Cheers.