EDWARDSVILLE – Any successful team, regardless of the sport, has to have a good share of role players, players who are willing to take on any assignment to ensure the team's success.

Edwardsville's Jasmine Bishop has been one such player for the Tigers; without her, this past season's edition of the Tigers may not have been as successful as they were or gotten to the IHSA Class 4A final.

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Bishop's efforts came to fruition Monday morning when she signed a letter of intent to attend NCAA Division III school Webster University in Webster Groves, Mo., a member of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference with schools such as Blackburn College in Carlinville, Fontbonne University in Clayton, Mo, Greenville College in Greenville and MacMurray University in Jacksonville.

“It's not too big, it's not too small,” Bishop said of why she chose to become a Gorlok. “It feels like home there; it seems like a really good program.”

Bishop feels it was a blessing to be a part of the Edwardsville program during the time she was there. “I’m blessed to be a part of the program,” Bishop said. “I’ve learned more than I thought I would, but that’s a blessing to be a part of this program.”

“It’s always exciting on my side to see kids get the opportunity to go on and help get it paid for; that’s a big part of the pleasure that I get out of my job,” said Tiger coach Lori Blade. “Hopefully, it helps young ladies move along.

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“I think it’s a good fit for Jasmine; being close is important for her, just that I think she can go in (to the Gorlok program) and make a big impact on that program right away.”

Bishop’s abilities on defense certainly helped her fulfill her role with the Tigers, Blade felt. “She is a good defensive player on the ball,” Blade said. “She hounds the ball really hard and was a good backup point guard for us; she hit some big shots in the postseason this year as we went along.

“She learned through the years the importance of taking care of the ball and minimizing turnovers as having the ball in her hands as much as a point guard does. She progressed really well; it was a pleasure to have her in our program and did a great job throughout the years.”

Bishop played a key role for the Tigers in their run to this year’s Class 4A state final, “offensively and defensively both,” Blade said. “She takes a lot of pride in the game and progressed really well through the years; but has a great mentality – she’s a hard-nosed kid that really gets after it and pushes each other in practice; that’s as important as her game time was.”

Bishop, who will major in biological sciences at Webster, will take many memories from the time in the Tiger program. “The way coach Blade does things; she does everything for a reason,” Bishop said. “She’s an awesome coach.”

      

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