Since the third grade while nearly reaching 5 feet tall, junior Paige Armstrong-Maltos has contributed to basketball with her height. Now at 6 feet 4 inches, her experience as well as stature has made her a fixture on the team.

Armstrong-Maltos’ love for basketball stems from her love of competition, in addition to using her height to help the team. She began playing on her friends’ urging, and soon developed a passion for the sport.

She was inspired to play by her brother and sister, along with other family members who play.

“Most people aren’t really close to being as tall as me. It gives me a chance to dominate,” Armstrong-Maltos said. “I started playing after people told me I should and I also watched my brother and sister play. They are tall too. My brother is 6 feet 8 inches and my sister is 6’2″.”

Her sophomore year was her first official year on the varsity team, playing post, despite previous experience playing and practicing with the upperclassmen.

“Although last year was my first year on varsity,” Armstrong-Maltos said, “my freshman year I got to join the team and play in the playoffs with them.”

Girls’ basketball coach Josh Tosland said Armstrong-Maltos has improved her skills through hard work and teammate motivation.

“She has so much good energy when she plays in a game,” Tosland said. “She decided to start working hard and also had a lot of support around her to keep encouraging her during practice by her teammates.”

Armstrong-Maltos practices for two hours about three days a week, depending on the game schedule. The rigorous timetable and high expectations add to the physical challenge.

“The hardest thing about practice is sometimes the pressure on freethrows or five spot shooting. Just finishing it is a big deal,” Armstrong-Maltos said.

In addition to in-season practice and games, Armstrong-Maltos continued over the summer by playing for the Hanford Heat basketball club.

“I played a summer league here [to improve],” Armstrong-Maltos said. “I also worked with a shooting coach, but for this next year I want to get a personal trainer and take a conditioning class.”

The pressure on Armstrong-Maltos, as a three-year varsity player and the tallest player, makes focusing on other areas a challenge.

“The hardest part of playing basketball is keeping up with school and trying to stay focused,” Maltos said. “Most of the times half way into the league you get tired. I get most stressed out by trying to keep my composure or having everyone think that because I’m the biggest one on the court that I will be perfect. I do want that, but I am only human.”

Two-year varsity teammate Ashlyn White, ’11, appreciates Armstrong-Maltos’ vitalizing efforts for the team.

“Paige is a very competitive player,” White said. “She is a good key to offense and defense with rebounds. During the game she encourages us all the time.”

During a game, Armstrong-Maltos tries to get pumped so that she can enjoy playing more. She feels that the commitment to play the game is high because of the time it takes.

Armstrong-Maltos’ pre-game routine consists of playing music in order to get her energy up.

“To get pumped up I like to listen to music,” Maltos said. “During the game, my teammates and the fans also help, but you have to be commited to the game because it is so much to do, but in the end it is all worth it.”

After graduating high school, Maltos hopes to move on to play college basketball, but has not yet picked a school.

“I do want to play in college,” Maltos said, “but I am not very sure where I want to go to play yet.”

Despite the stress of school and sports, Maltos relaxes by hanging out with friends and shopping and cherishing the sleep she misses during the basketball season.

“Sleeping is a great way to relax after hanging with your friends,” Maltos said. “Although I like to hang out with friends and sleep in, my favorite way to relax is to text my friends. I am a textaholic. That, besides basketball, is what I do all the time.”

For more information on girls’ basketball, read the sport shorts or read the Jan. 23 article, Cross country primes basketball post or e-mail Josh Tosland.