After leading North Idaho College to a National Junior College Athletic Association championship as a sophomore in 2011, Camille Reynolds caught the attention of NCAA programs around the country. Recruited by schools like James Madison, Liberty and Long Beach State, she eventually decided to sign with the South Alabama.
Although she was born in Idaho, Reynolds said one of the main factors behind her decision to play at South Alabama was to be close to family.
“My brother lives in Houston, and if I had gone to a school in Virginia or California, it wouldn’t be as close to family,” she said. “When I decided to come here, it was nice to know that if I needed him, he would be closer.”
Reynolds said her relationship with her older brother has remained strong since childhood. “He was a typical big brother and was always beating me up,” she said with a laugh. “My sister is really talented in the arts, and I was always the little sport in the family, so he treated me like a little brother.
“Now he’s a petty officer and a recruiter for the Navy. I talk to him every week, and he follows all of our games. Whenever we play near Houston, he comes to support me. We’re also both big (Los Angeles) Lakers fans, so we always talk about that.”
Family wasn’t the only reason Reynolds decided to come to South Alabama, however. She said she was drawn to program immediately and even cancelled recruiting visits to other schools after an up-close look at program and the campus. “I really liked the girls a lot, and I was impressed by the coaching staff,” said the senior guard. “I just felt comfortable, and I’m very thankful that I’m here.”
To this day, she still looks back fondly on the experience of winning a national championship.
“You never know how good your team is until you get to the end,” said Reynolds. “We had a really talented group of players, and we never doubted ourselves. We peaked at the right time, and we knew we were going to win. It wasn’t cockiness, we just knew. I think winning championships is a combination of peaking at the right time, having no injuries, a little bit of luck, and a lot of hard work.”
Now a Lady Jag, Reynolds hopes to take what she learned from that experience and apply it to this season. “Our main goal is to have fun, but of course we want to win a conference title,” she said. “It's always our goal to make it into the postseason, whether it's the NIT or NCAA tournament.”
Individually, Reynolds said her goals haven’t changed. “My goal this season is the same as every season, which is to play my role and contribute my strengths to the team as much as I can,” she said.
One of those strengths has been clutch shooting. In her first game as a Jaguar last season, Reynolds came off the bench to score 31 points -- including four three-pointers – in a triple-overtime victory over Central Florida. In the very next game versus Southern, she sparked a rally by scoring 14 points, all in the second half. She has followed with a number of clutch performances throughout her stint with the Lady Jags.
“I like those kinds of moments,” said Reynolds. “They don't scare me. My teammates are awesome players, and it seems like they are always able to find me wide open in those situations. I think with the combination of the plays our coaches draw up and my teammates finding me open, it just plays out like that a lot of times. When I do get the ball in those situations, it's up to me to just be calm and knock it down."
Along with her fellow seniors, Reynolds wants to help guide this year’s squad to success. "I think our senior class is a really good group of leaders,” she said. “Everybody has a different way of leading. I'm not the loudest one; I think Ronnie (Veronica Cherizol) and Mansa (El) are the most vocal. I think just playing hard and leading by example is the best way for me to go about it.”
As a senior, Reynolds has also stepped into the role of full-time starter this season as opposed to coming off the bench most of last season. She said she doesn’t place much emphasis on the distinction, considering how many different players contribute.
“Last year I came off the bench, but I feel like our bench is really important too,” said Reynolds. “Coach (Rick) Pietri treats everybody the same. If you’re playing well, you’re going to play, regardless of whether or not you’re a starter. I think that’s really cool because if you look at other teams in our conference, they might only play five or six people. With our team, everybody is good, so everybody deserves a chance.”
In her final season, Reynolds hopes to put the finishing touches on an impressive college career. As for what comes next, she said she’s headed back to the classroom.
“I’ll graduate in December, so I’ve still got some school left,” she said. “After that, I’m definitely going to go to graduate school. I’d really like to do something in environmental science or renewable energy. I want to do something that will benefit others, something that will help the environment.”
While she has big plans for the future, Reynolds’ primary focus is the present. “Right now I want to finish this season strong and do what I can to help this team.”
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