It’s a hoops homecoming for Bosma
Niagara College welcomes one-time OCAA West Division scoring champ to lineup
In three seasons playing women’s basketball at Redeemer University, Jessica Bosma used to see red whenever she competed on the court against the blue and white.
The 23-year-old Hamilton native, now back in Ontario after spending a year studying at Trinity Western University in Langley, B.C., recalled that facing the Niagara Knights was always a challenge when she played in the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA). She did not await with pleasure the annual home-and-home between the Redeemer Royals and Niagara College in the West Division rivalry.
“I remember not looking forward to playing them. They were always pretty feisty, I think that would be a good way to describe them,” she recalled with a laugh. “So I would definitely rather be playing with them than against them.”
Rather than remaining out west to continue her education, Bosma decided to come home to study paramedics.
“I’m hoping that will jump-start me into firefighting eventually,” she said in an interview from Hamilton, where she is working full time in construction for All-Pro Installations.
Bosma graduated from Trinity Western with honours in biology with a minor in chemistry.
She considered five post-secondary institutions before choosing Niagara for the strength of its paramedics program.
The Welland campus’s proximity to Hamilton also helped tip the scales in Niagara’s favour.
“It’s nice and close to my home.” Academics outweighed athletics when the time came to make a decision.
“Basketball was just kind of the icing on the cake for me. I went and watched a game, and I really like the way the girls played,” Bosma said.
“And I met Chris (Rao), the coach, and I liked everything he had to say.”
Rao, who is entering his second season as head coach, came away equally impressed after meeting the one-time OCAA West Division scoring champ.
“In her last year in this league, she was 19 points per game, 13 rebounds. She brings a presence, for sure, of someone who can produce at this level,” he said. “I think she will fit really well with our system.
“She’ll be a problem for a lot of teams to handle on the court.”
Niagara is eager to plan plays that can build on the passing and playmaking skills the six-foot forward brings to the team.
“We’re just really excited to plug her into a bunch of situations to create mismatches on the perimeter. We’re going to try to attack people that way,” Rao said.
“She is well-conditioned, she has great touch and she’s a very skilled player.”
He also likes what Bosma brings to the table in terms of leadership and personality.
“From a people perspective, she is an amazing person. She is a person you enjoy being around,” Rao said. “You have to remember, we have to be around these people every day for six to eight months in a typical season. You don’t want to bring in people who aren’t good people.”
The graduate of Guido de Brès Christian High School in Hamilton saw action for the Trinity Western women’s team before deciding to take a year off. “It wasn’t a good fit for me,” said Bosma, who played rugby 7s instead.
She isn’t worried that playing a much more physical sport will translate into more fouls when she returns to the basketball court.
“Rugby is definitely more handson than basketball, but am I worried? No, not really,” Bosma said. “The position I play in basketball is already very physical. Obviously, I’m not going to be tackling anybody.”
If anything, she had to teach herself to be “more aggressive in rugby.”
“Basketball is a much more natural sport for me,” she said.
Bosma, who earned all-academic honours in each of her three years at Redeemer, didn’t find the new sport that much different from the old one.
“Basketball and rugby have a lot of transferable skills despite looking completely different,” she said.
Bosma is looking forward to making the transition to hoops from rugby.
“Hopefully, breaking the habit of only passing backwards,” Bosma added with a laugh.
Since Canada West, Trinity Western’s conference, doesn’t have rugby 7s, Bosma has two years remaining in her eligibility to compete at the post-secondary level.
She was a standout in the classroom as well on the court in her final season at Redeemer.
Bosma was named a Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association academic all-Canadian and was selected as an OCAA West Division second-team all-star after leading the division in scoring, averaging 19.1 points per game, and finishing third in rebounding, with 13.1 per contest.
“We’re just really excited to plug her into a bunch of situations to create mismatches on the perimeter.”
CHRIS RAO NIAGARA COLLEGE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH