EDINBURG – Graduate student Laura Van Tilburg of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley women's basketball team has had plenty of memorable moments throughout her basketball career but the moment that kick started it all came when she was alone in the gym working on her free throws.
 
"Back in high school, in the summer, I was just shooting around in the gym and trying to work on the game by myself," Van Tilburg said. "Coach [Griselda] Fino told me that she really thought that I could go and play basketball at the next level. Ever since someone else thought that of me and believed in me, I was like, ok that's what I want to do. Ever since then I was getting in the gym getting extra shots. I was in the weight room. I just had this whole different mentality."
 
Van Tilburg says it was that moment that has led to some great things in the game of basketball but the love of the game started back when she was five years old. It was at that age that Van Tilburg got her first taste of the game when she was signed up for a youth league in Weslaco.
 
She enjoyed it so much that she found herself shooting baskets in her back yard, whether it was by herself, with her brother, or some friends. Van Tilburg is grateful for all the support she got early on from her family and friends as they pushed her to be the best she could be.
 
Van Tilburg knew that she had to work hard to find the results she wanted on the court but one of the things she loves about basketball is that anything can happen once you step on the court.
 
"I think that you never know what you are going to get or what is going to come out of it," Van Tilburg said. "On any given day, any team can win. On any given day, a player can do something special. I just think the game is never the same every day. You just have to plan and adapt."
 
Van Tilburg took that love for basketball into high school and after having that fateful chat with coach Fino, she really started to build a great résumé at Weslaco High School.
 
She closed out her high school career averaging 17.5 points with 14.4 rebounds, 4.8 steals, and 5.1 blocks as a senior. Van Tilburg was named RGVsports.com 5A Girls Athlete of the Year and earned All-Valley Defensive Player of the Year honors as a senior.
 
That same season, Van Tilburg guided her team to a No. 1 ranking in the RGV with a 34-2 record while leading her team district championships and Sweet 16 appearances in her final two years. She even got to play on the same court, the UTRGV Fieldhouse, that she would call home for the next four years.
 
Van Tilburg started sending out her highlight reel and résumé sometime in her junior year but it wasn't until her senior year that she got some interest from UTRGV.
 
"I was at a volleyball game in Weslaco and coach [Larry] Tidwell gave me a call," Van Tilburg said. "That was when he first told me that he wanted me to come to campus. He really wanted to give me a scholarship and wanted me to come play here."
 
Van Tilburg couldn't pass up the chance to play close to home. In fact, that is one of her favorite things about playing in college. She knows not very many get a chance to play so close to home so she enjoys the fact that her family and friends can come to the UTRGV Fieldhouse to see her play.
 
She knows how lucky she is with just the fact that she can go home whenever she wants or go and get a home cooked meal. Van Tilburg likes that she has that option but she also likes that she has been able to grow independently living off campus in her own place.
 
Over the last four years, Van Tilburg has been able to grow and now has become a role model for girls throughout the RGV. She believes she has tried to set the right example for others looking up to her.
 
"I think I am a good role model to everyone," Van Tilburg said. "I am someone who people can look up to. I have good grades and I don't talk back to coaches. I am respectful and I think that is a good characteristic for someone to have on the team. I think I also bring leadership qualities and I think I am someone people can talk to and have fun with."
 
Van Tilburg has had her share of fun on the court as well here at UTRGV. She has seen her playing time increase every year. Van Tilburg played in 19 games as freshman and then upped that to 23 games as a sophomore.
 
As a junior, Van Tilburg played in 33 games while starting in five but this year as a senior she has played in 22 games while starting in 11 of them. She has more than tripled her scoring average from last year to this year with 9.1 points per game so far this season.
 
As she looks back on her collegiate career, Van Tilburg is going to miss all that student-athletes go through but she is really going to miss those special moments with her teammates.
 
"I am definitely going to miss being around my teammates every day," Van Tilburg said. "They are just so fun to be around. I am going to miss living with them. I am going to miss coming to practice every day and working on my craft trying to get better. I am going to miss the traveling. I think I am going to miss everything."
 
Van Tilburg is currently getting her master's degree in kinesiology with an emphasis on sports management. She is intrigued by the human body and its movement and one day hopes to go into physical therapy.
 
She may even want to go to med school and open up her own practice, which having a sports management degree will surely be helpful.
 
Van Tilburg knows that she has had a great ride over the last four years and she wouldn't have been able to make it this far without the help of certain people and she would be remiss if she didn't thank them.
 
"I want to thank coach Tidwell for giving me the opportunity to play," Van Tilburg said. "I want to thank Anthony, Kaylena, Yak, and coach Gabe who was here last year. I'd also like to thank my high school coach, coach Fino, who helped me get to this point. I definitely want to thank my mom, my dad, my family, my church and the entire community for their continued support."

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