Dec. 18, 2007
By Brett Miller, Athletic Communications Student Assistant
In a sport like basketball where most players start when they are in elementary or middle school, starting at the high school level is a rarity.
However, for Rashida Mark, her basketball career began to bloom during her time at Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Like many people who are considered tall, the 6-2 Mark dealt with comments from friends and peers about why she was not playing basketball earlier.
"I guess it was just so much of a thing since I was tall," Mark said. "Everyone was just like, `why don't you play (basketball)?' So one day I was like, I think I might like to try basketball."
For Mark, the decision to play basketball so much later than others came from her childhood. When Mark was young, her mother encouraged her to play and try other sports like tennis and swimming for fun.
"The only thing I consistently could like to do all the time was basketball," said Mark. "Being from New York City, everything is basketball anyway. So I guess I was influenced by my environment which is why I liked it so much."
It was not until Mark's sophomore year in high school that she realized she could take her skills to the collegiate level.
"At first, it was a real casual thing," Mark said. "My sophomore year (in high school) is when I really started playing AAU basketball and my coach told me that if I worked hard enough, I could get a scholarship. I didn't want to have to get loans and I really liked basketball, so then I just really started working on my game."
When Mark first joined her high school basketball team, she encountered some obstacles in her team's chemistry because her skill level and basketball knowledge was not to the same level as her teammates. This early transition period for Mark did not last long though. As Mark learned more and more about the game, she improved greatly.
"As I got better, they obviously were very accepting of it and glad because it had to happen for us to get to where we got," said Mark. "We had a really good team my senior year and I wasn't the only part of that but it was just a culmination of things. Obviously me getting better helped us to get to our state championship."
One of Mark's favorite basketball memories career came during her senior year in the state championship game.
"It was a really close game," Mark said with a big smile. "It went into overtime and a girl had a shot at the buzzer. It was just so close and we were so nervous because that really wasn't one of our best games as a team. But we definitely pulled through it and it was just nice because it was our coach's first championship and obviously our team hasn't won one before, so it was just great."
After winning a state championship in Mark's senior year at Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School and garnering various awards, Mark turned her eyes towards Penn State. First-year Lady Lion head coach Coquese Washington has taken notice of Mark's skill and athleticism.
"Rashida has a lot of athleticism," Washington said. "She's stronger than she looks and as her confidence grows, she continues to play better."