As a junior, Makenna Ott had the type of season about which most players only dream. She shot 46% from the field, made 76% of her free throws, and averaged 14.1 points, 2.7 assists, 1.3 blocks, and 7.2 rebounds per game while leading the Haslett Vikings to a perfect 10-0 conference record and a 23-2 overall record. Entering her fourth season of varsity basketball with the Vikings, Ott is ready to improve on a resume that landed her offers from Central Michigan University and the University of Toledo before she decided on Hillsdale College, where she will continue her basketball career.
“You get a feeling when you visit different schools” said Ott. “When I visited Hillsdale, it just felt like home, with an awesome coach and great academics.”
Between her freshman and sophomore seasons, Ott worked hard to improve her game and to put herself in a position to play college basketball. “I think the thing I worked hardest on was my decision-making,” Ott said. “During my freshman season, I would try to dribble through double and triple teams, and I learned to trust my teammates and know they would help our team when I passed them the ball.”
Vikings head coach Bob Currier has seen Ott’s growth first hand. “Makenna has worked as hard as anyone on our team, and the best part, from a coach’s point of view, is that you never hear a bad word from Makenna about herself or her teammates. I got a chance to watch her in 8th grade,” he continued, “and between volleyball and basketball, I knew she was an outstanding athlete.”
“This is a fun group to play with, and the best part is, we all play different positions,” said Ott. “Even though I got recruited as a small forward, I can bring the ball up the court and it makes it hard for other teams to game plan against us.”