Prep of the Week: Hannah Hanson

(ABC 6 News) — Hannah Hanson can score any way she wants with her ball handling and three-point range.

But what makes her such a key veteran on Mayo girls hoops is her ability to put her teammates in scoring position.

“Yeah, for sure,” Hanson said. “Having teammates who I know for sure can score, who I know can put up points is really important. I trust all of them and I think it’s really important to give them the opportunity to score as well as me.”

This makes it all the more meaningful for Hanson in her senior year, the final time she’ll step on the court as a basketball player. After this school year, she’ll be heading to Biola University in California where volleyball and track will have her full attention.

“Basketball’s always going to be a great way for me to get exercise even when I’m out of college and maybe catch up with old teammates,” Hanson continued. “I think that’s going to be a great opportunity for me to have.”

But you won’t see this Spartan leader get downtrodden despite it all. Not even when her team may not be at its best some days and especially not when the Spartans are atop the Big 9 Conference and angling for a run to state.

“You can make a positive impact on the team regardless of whether you’ve scored or not and that’s what she’s done,” Spartans Girls Basketball head coach Andy Bromeling stated. “The girls love each other and that’s a huge part of it, but Hannah’s the leader of all of that. When anybody’s ever down she’s right there to pick them up and that’s a huge part of who she is.”

Every basket and every game left is a relished chance for Hannah to love her first sport over and over one last time. No matter how far the Spartans go, Hanson will go out with a smile. An indicator of the enduring positivity she brings to her team.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen her have a bad day,” Coach Bromeling recounted. “We lost a game earlier and after the game, she talked about how great it was to play with each other. And she never – she’s just always positive, she never has a bad day, I’m telling you.”

“I’m definitely going to miss the game, I’m going to miss the quick [pace] of the game,” Hanson added. “I think I’m just going to miss the sport in general. The atmosphere is different than track and volleyball. I think for sure missing the team.”