Senior Alyssa Oursler is a co-captain on Middletown’s girls varsity basketball team. She has been on varsity since her sophomore year and is a player to look for this season.

Although she did not play on an organized team until 5^th grade, she has been around the game as long as she can remember. Oursler is a very driven athlete; she dedicates most of her time to basketball, among other things.

She is the Design Editor of the yearbook, a member of National Honor Society and holds a job at the local Middletown business, CLH Creations, while still managing her time with school.

In the off-season Oursler plays AAU for Blue Ridge Force and has since she was in 8^th grade. Her senior year she played in a fall league in Baltimore called the Blue Angels; Oursler mostly works on her own to make herself better.

“I love it and I want to be the best I can be because I recognize the years playing competitively are limited,” Oursler said when talking about what motivates her.

Most Middletown residents remember her older brother, Michael Oursler, another Middletown basketball standout who graduated in 2008. Alyssa and Michael worked on their individual games together before he left for the University of Maryland, College Park.

“Michael and I would shoot together and play one-on-one, even though I would normally lose. We always shared a common love for the game and that brought us even closer,” she said.

Oursler’s personal goal this year is to step up her game. As a senior captain, she wants to be a good leader to her teammates and end her high school career knowing that she did the best she could and worked as hard as she could.

Her team goals for this year are to be considered just as good as last year’s team, if not better. And to, “of course, win the region and go to UMBC.”

The beginning of this season is one of Oursler’s fondest memories in basketball.

“It feels rewarding to work as hard as I did in the off-season and use it to be able to perform will in the first couple of games.”

A standout game in Oursler’s career is the game vs. the Linganore Lancers in the 2007-2008 varsity girls basketball season. The Knights trailed in the first half and during the second half came the Knights turn around. Nearing the final minute of the game Middletown was in the one and one and then the bonus. Oursler stepped up and sealed the win for Middletown by hitting two free throws in the double bonus, when players previous to Oursler went to the foul line and missed leaving the game up in the air.

Another cherished moment in Oursler’s basketball career is her sophomore and junior years on varsity. She was close with everyone on the team and, “I was especially close with the players on the team last year (2007-2008), including all four of the seniors.”

Oursler definitely wants to play in college. She is looking at playing a Division lll school. As of right now she is looking at: Washington and Jefferson College, Gettysburg College, Stevens Institute of Technology, University of Mary Washington, and University of Scranton.

Oursler’s future is looking bright and she is playing great. Be sure to look out for #11, on and off the court. Her skills and love for the game show in the intensity of her play.