Jasmine Covington

By Allen Etzler
Published in Sports on April 26, 2015 1:45 PM

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As a sophomore, Jasmine Covington had no idea how good she was as a basketball player.

College coaches contacted her about playing, but she still didn't know if she was good enough. In fact, Covington didn't realize how good she was until her senior season -- when it was almost too late.

"My first two years I didn't get the grades I needed because I didn't think I knew that I could actually be good at this, so I wasn't doing what I needed to in school," Covington said.

But after a meeting with head coach Phil Gray in her junior year, Covington turned her academic performance around in time to be able to continue her career. She signed a national letter-of-intent with Louisburg College earlier this week.

"I'm proud of Jasmine," Gray said. "She's come a long way and she's put in all the work. She deserves all the blessings that are coming to her."

Covington averaged more than 11 points and five rebounds for the Warriors, who finished 26-1 and reached the eastern regional semifinals. What was more impressive to her, personally, was the success she had against the much-improved competition Eastern Wayne faced throughout the season.

"In the past I didn't know how good I was because we weren't playing against great competition," she said. "This year we played against really good competition and I was doing really well and I was just like 'wow I'm really good at this I might actually be able to make something of myself.'"

Coaches from East Carolina and Western Carolina watched Covington play toward the end of the season. But because she fell behind the eight-ball academically she turned to the school that came to her before anyone else -- Louisburg

"I think I would like to go to ECU once I'm done at Louisburg, but I think right now Louisburg is the right choice for me," Covington said. "I enjoyed the campus and the coaches."

Junior college is often the end of the road for several athletes, but can sometimes be a stepping stone to help a player develop for a bigger step down the road. Covington plans for herself to fall in the latter group of players.

"I want to be successful here and make this the first step of a long journey," Covington said.

She has the athleticism to play at any level she wants. She has the speed, shooting ability and dribbling ability to fit out on the wing. But she often played in the post for the Warriors this year because of her jumping and rebounding ability.

Covington passed the ball better this season, but also learned when she could take over a game.

"When I was a freshman I did not pass," Covington said. "This year I realized that we were a better team if I was passing the ball and using my teammates rather than just coming down and shooting every time. And then the floor opened up for me."

But Covington also knows there are plenty of things she needs to improve on -- most notably her left hand.

"I'm honestly surprised nobody ever really, really forced me to use my left," Covington said. "Because I'm not that great at dribbling to the left or finishing with my layup. It's the biggest thing I'm planning to work on."

Gray has also stressed that Covington needs to improve mentally so she can deal with the peaks and valleys that come with college athletics.

"I just want her to stay up when things don't go her way," Gray said. "If she doesn't let herself get down when things are going bad, she is going to do well."