Emma Pavelek is a grateful hard worker who wants to win some more hardware

Beaver Area basketball player Emma Pavelek stands during a basketball practice while listening to a trainer.

SOURCE: 20:20 Productions

Emma Pavelek is a winner.

Pavelek is currently a senior at Beaver Area and has been a standout athlete at the school since her freshman year. There is no question that a lot of her peers think of her as one of the most athletic kids in the Beaver Area Class of 2021. If Beaver Area's yearbook staff did a Senior Superlative category for "Most Athletic", she would definitely be considered a good candidate for the category.

Right now, she currently has a combined total of 13 WPIAL and PIAA medals for basketball and track & field. Seven of those medals are WPIAL medals from track, four of those medals are PIAA medals are from track, and two of those medals are WPIAL medals from basketball.

She has experienced of winning gold in track & field as she even set a Beaver Area record for the best high jump in school history as she reached 5-foot-7 in the event back in 2019 at the PIAA Track & Field Championships.

It is currently January and one thing that Pavelek is focusing on is winning some WPIAL and PIAA gold medals in the sport of basketball. In her junior year of basketball in 2020, and freshman year of basketball in 2018, her Beaver Area basketball teams made it to the WPIAL championship, but in both games the Bobcats fell up short earning them silver medals. However, after the 2020 WPIAL 3A Girls Basketball Championship Game, the Bobcats were feasting as they won the first two rounds of the PIAA 3A tournament until COVID-19 ruined their chances of trying to a state title.

"After losing in the WPIAL championship game [to Mohawk in 2020], we had come back stronger and more determined than I’ve had ever seen us, said Pavelek. "We were so ready to go after the state title and we’re working so hard to get there. Having that taken away from us made us very upset, but it also has lit a fire under us. We wanted to prove that we weren’t done, and we were going for that title last season. and that determination has definitely carried over to this season."

Pavelek's Bobcats began the 2020-21 WPIAL basketball season strong as on December 11, 2020, her team played against North Hills at home while winning by a score 58-6. This was the first time in Pavelek's high school career that she was a part of a Beaver team that held another team to less than 10 points. After that very impressive win, Pavelek, the Bobcats, and all WPIAL/PIAA basketball players had to wait exactly four weeks until the season could resume again because Pennsylvania was shut down once again due to COVID-19 cases going up in the state.

"I was beyond proud of my team and I [against North Hills]. We knew going into the season that defense was “our thing”. We wanted to prove that we have some of the best defense game in the WPIAL. After the game, we were excited to know that we were able to hold a team to so little, it was a refreshing feeling to know we “still had it”.

For Pavelek and the Bobcats, they knew that once they got the "green light" again and be allowed to play, that they had to be ready.

"My team and I had daily zoom basketball practice. We all logged onto a zoom meeting and went through a 35-40-minute cardio/strength workout. We also had charts that we filled out daily in order to keep up with our running and conditioning. We worked so hard before the four-week break happened. We also had team meetings where we went over plays on screen, watched film, and discussed our individual roles on the team along with what we have to do to be successful this season."

So, Pavelek and the Bobcats did everything they could in those four weeks to get better even if they couldn't see each other in person that much. The first game that the Bobcats played after the four-week shutdown was on Monday when they defeated Montour at home by a score of 58-31. With the Bobcats now having a 2-0 record, their focus now is travelling on the road to take on Quaker Valley on Thursday where Corinne Washington will be waiting for them.

"I think the biggest thing we need to do is to be mentally prepared against Quaker Valley, said Pavelek. "I know that we can physically overcome any challenge. The next step for us is to believe and see ourselves winning. Quaker Valley is a great team, they have great players and they are well coached. We have to be ready to play a team that’s ready to play us. We have to bring our A-game."

One of the things that this Beaver Area team have gotten stronger in is experience and Pavelek will tell you that.

"Compared to my past years playing high school basketball, the biggest difference I see this year is we have more confidence and experience. During my sophomore and junior years, we had a very young team. But now, we have plenty of seniors, juniors, and sophomores who have all gained a lot of confidence in themselves and have even been to a WPIAL championship game," she said. "My team’s seniors and I have now been to and played in 2 WPIAL championship games, made 3 good state runs, and have played some great competition. So, I think right now our strength is that we know what we can do. It’s just a matter of executing. There is always room for improvement in every aspect of the game, so as far as what we need to work on, I'd say everything. There’s not a single thing we do “perfectly”, we can always get better."

In the two games that Beaver has played this season, Pavelek is averaging 15.5 points per game but that statistic might not be important to her. Or maybe it is? Anyway, what is true is that her focus is on helping Beaver win a WPIAL and PIAA basketball championship. With everything going on in the world involving the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of people have had different viewpoints of life and have learned something about themselves. Pavelek can fall into the category of, "High School Athletes who have learned something from the COVID-19 pandemic".

"I’ve learned a lot over this crazy time period, but I think the most valuable thing I’ve learned about myself is that I thrive through social interaction," said Pavelek, who was 2019 Beaver County Times Girls Athlete of the Year. "This could be through basketball practices, AAU games, school, track workouts, or something as simple as strength training class. But I also learned that as much as I love the social aspect of life, I am resilient and not having those interactions didn’t stop me from improving myself individually during the lockdown. I found it within myself to continue to work out every day, to get outside to dribble and shoot, and to encourage my teammates to do the same, and that’s something I’m proud of. Being able to inspire myself to continue to grow and get better is important, but I also hopefully encourage others to do the same."

Pavelek is definitely at a point in her life in which she can think about on how she has changed in her high school. She still has a whole semester left of high school to be great and make history. With the COVID-19 pandemic stopping her and the Bobcats from a chance at a PIAA basketball title, she realized that she should not take for granted the opportunities that are given to her. She is a hard worker to begin with, but the fact that the opportunity to win a state title made her work ever harder going into this season.

"I think the biggest change I went through was the realization that life doesn’t wait for you. You have to treat every practice, every game, every day of school, everything like it could be your last," she said. "I’ve always been one to give my 100% in everything, but now after seeing what some of last year's seniors went through, not knowing their last game was their last game, I’ve realized that you can’t take anything for granted."

It can be argued that the WPIAL Class of 2021 has been overlooked in by schools for college recruitment. There have been a lot of athletes from this graduating class that deserve a scholarship but have not had an opportunity to receive one because of the NCAA letting the 2020-21 year be a "free year" by having student-athletes have an extra year of eligibility. Fortunately for Pavelek, even though the recruiting process slowed down for her once the COVID-19 pandemic started, one school gave her an opportunity that she could not refuse to pass up.

"There were a lot of schools I was talking to and that I was interested in but when the lockdown hit, a lot of the recruiting started to slow down. I was thinking I was going to go to either Clarion or Millersville. They are both beautiful schools with amazing coaches. But I tried to hold out during the lockdown to see if I could get the chance to get a few more AAU games in before I decided," Pavelek said. "Then, Navy reached out. I had talked to Navy during my freshman and sophomore year, but not for basketball. They were recruiting me for track, but I knew I wanted to play basketball. I remember telling my parents “if the basketball coach reached out I would definitely go there”. When Navy reached out for basketball [during the COVID-19 pandemic], I knew I could never pass that opportunity up. The academics, the campus, the coaching staff, all of it was exactly what I was looking for in a school. I also knew wherever I went I wanted to be pushed to be better and test my limits. The United States Naval Academy is exactly the place that is going to do that for me. I’m so grateful to Coach Taylor and the rest of the coaching staff at Navy for giving me this opportunity and believing in me."

Pavelek committed to Navy in August and she is excited to get to work there. However, before she can get her mind on helping Navy win a NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship, she will continue to focus herself on trying to win a WPIAL and PIAA Basketball Championship for Beaver. You also know she is trying to win some more hardware in Track & Field as well before she graduates from high school.

Seriously though, Pavelek deserves everything that she has received, and she has a good mindset and viewpoint of life that can get her far in life. A couple of people that she credits her success to is to her parents. Her parents will be watching to see what else she can accomplish before graduation and she is beyond grateful for them as well.

"From day one of me deciding to play basketball, my dad and my mom both, have been my biggest supporters. My dad is the reason I am the player and person I am today," said Pavelek. "He wakes up at the crack of dawn at 4:30 a.m. to go to the gym with me before school. Whether it’s rebounding, hitting me with a mat to make sure I can finish those and-1s, or timing my suicides and 17's, he’s been there. He’s never missed a game. He’s gone to outdoor courts in the freezing weather and chased after every loose ball to make sure my shoes didn’t get dirty. He reminds me before every game to “have fun out there”. Not only has he physically and mentally pushed me to be the best athlete I can be, but he’s taught me everything I know about working hard for something and never giving up. My dad is truly my hero."

Brentaro Yamane: bkyamane@gmail.com and Twitter/Instagram @BYHilton13