JMU CO-CAPTAIN A BONDING INFLUENCE FOR WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

Carrie Klamut '10

The word “glue” might remind some of a tangled mess in their long curly locks when an elementary school classmate got carried away with an art project. Or the painful skin-peeling sensation from a time when fingers were accidently stuck together. The word itself has another interpretation.

More commonly associated definitions might be a cement mixture that unites substances or an adhesive that holds items together. Think of those substances as teammates and that adhesive as an individual and there shines a captain of the women's basketball team, Kisha Stokes.

Stokes is highly looked up to by everyone on the team. She is a strong leader but not in a noisy way. When Coach Kenny Brooks needs something relayed to the girls that he cannot quite seem to get through, Stokes has chosen an alternative method rather than jumping on them in front of everyone.

“I'll just try to tell them by pulling them to the side later when there aren't others around. I don't want them to feel like they are getting picked on,” says Stokes.

Her leadership skills are noticed by her teammates.

“No matter what obstacle she faced this year she has still managed to persevere,” says freshman forward Kanita Sheperd. “She has a passion for the game and the determination to get out there on the court to assume her role as an excellent captain. She is indeed a silent leader, and that is one of the many reasons why I admire her as a person.”

Admiration for Stokes is seen throughout the team.