FAIRLEA- Greenbrier East Lady Spartans basketball player Hannah Fuller is in the midst of a promising sophomore campaign.
Fuller and her East teammates just recently wrapped up an 18-4 regular season and have won 15 of their last 16 games with sectional postseason play beginning this week.
The second-year starter is a big reason why.
Fuller stands over 6-feet tall and is literally head and shoulders above most of her competition. That height, mixed with her talent, which has improved tremendously over the last year-and-a-half or so, has helped Fuller score 7.8 points per game and grab 6.3 rebounds. She is also the leading shot blocker on the team with 35. Her biggest game of the season came just a few weeks back against Mercer Christian Academy when she scored 15 points and grabbed 19 rebounds. Without Fuller on that night, the Spartans would most likely be 17-5 right now.
Fuller credits her improvements to a plethora of different things.
“I have put a lot of work into it,” Fuller said.
“I have played travel ball the last four years in the offseason, and last summer and fall, I had the opportunity to work with a college coach. I go to all the open gyms and play a lot against my brother,” she added.
Being tall obviously has its advantages in basketball, but there are also some negatives about it as well as Fuller has experienced multiple times this season.
“Not too many people can block my shots, but I’m also the first one they call a foul on a lot of times,” Fuller stated.
The Spartans are an extremely young team as they start a freshman, three sophomores (including Fuller), and a junior. But even with the youth movement and the future looking bright, Fuller thinks the time can be now to make a run at something special.
“We have played some good team ball. I think we have a great chance (at a state tournament berth). We have a strong and talented team,” she said.
Playing against her brother is not the only family that is getting her through her playing days and being there for her in more ways than one as her parents are always stepping up to the plate as well.
“They have helped in so many ways from making sure I get to and from all the games and practices, to pushing me to be the best I can be. They are always telling me to play hard but enjoy playing the game that I love. They are definitely my biggest fans,” Fuller said thankfully.
Although her family will always be number one in her heart, the center does have a favorite memory already just two years into her Spartan career.
“Playing in the Springhouse Tournament,” Fuller concluded.
Fuller is the daughter of T.R. and Amanda Fuller. She has two sisters and a brother.
Fuller and the Lady Spartans begin postseason play this Tuesday night, Feb. 20 at home against the Woodrow Wilson Lady Flying Eagles. Tipoff is at 7:30.
