Over summer break, seniors Bailey Collar and Mackenzie Hart signed to play basketball at the collegiate level.  For both players, this accomplishment was the culmination of many years of work.

“I started playing basketball in second grade when I was 8 years old,” Collar said. “So I’ve been playing for 10 years.”

Collar started playing varsity basketball in her freshman year, back in 2017. Over the summer, she received an offer to play at Washburn University.

“I had a couple of DIII offers,” Collar said. “But that was my only DII offer.”

Collar is passionate about Washburn and has always wanted to play in an MIAA (Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association) school.

“I was super excited [when Washburn reached out],” Collar said. “I’ve seen a few of their games over the years…I went to their camp this June, and they talked to me after, and they invited me to a visit I went on in August. When I went on the campus, it just felt like home.”

Collar is going to be studying sports broadcasting at Washburn, building off of her previous experiences being a part of OWTV. She hopes to get a job in the sports broadcasting field, even if it’s only for a local station or high school games like the ones she announces here at West.

Hart, also a varsity starter since her freshman year, committed to UMKC over the summer as well. 

“I started playing competitive ball in the eighth grade,” Hart said. “No one in my family has ever played basketball except for me. I just picked up on it and started to like it.”

Hart said that when UMKC came to watch her play she was anxious because that was one of the top schools that she wanted to go to.

“I actually reached out to them first,” Hart said, when asked how she reacted when UMKC reached out to her. “I always went to their games and I was always liking their stuff on Twitter.”

Hart’s main focus in college is going to be on basketball. She also dreams of becoming a coach at the high school level when she is older.

“Other colleges did talk to me, but I wanted to stay close to home,” Hart said. “I don’t want to go far and I want my family to come watch me play.”