After concluding her senior year at Galion High School, Natalee Perkins will move on to Bluffton University, where she will continue playing basketball.
Perkins, who will major in dietetics with a goal of becoming a registered dietitian. She noted that one reason that she chose Bluffton to continue her education involved that major.
“I really liked the school and the campus was pretty,” she said. “The team was real welcoming and I liked the girls and coach and they had the major I was interested in.”
Perkins didn’t start playing basketball until she was in eighth grade, but it didn’t take long for her to realize she wanted to see how far she could go in that sport.
“Since my sophomore year,” she said about when she started looking as collegiate basketball as a possibility. “I started playing in eighth grade, so I didn’t see it as me being super good at it, but when I got the goal in mind, I worked super hard at it.”
Perkins said it took a lot of work to elevate her game.
“Working over the summer,” she said. “Having teammates and coaches pushing me to be better and a lot of discipline, as well.”
After signing with Bluffton, Perkins said that she’s expecting basketball to become a lot more challenging — something she is looking forward to.
“I think it will be a lot different,” she said. “The girls will be a lot stronger and quicker and the game will be a lot faster paced. I’m looking to improve and see what I can do with my athletic career here. I’m excited to play with the new girls and coach.”
While Perkins is looking forward to college life, she noted that she doesn’t expect it to be a difficult transition academically.
“I’m doing a two-year degree now in high school, so it’s not going to be too different,” she said. “I’m looking forward to living in the dorms and meeting new people and the freedom that goes with that.”
However, she will miss a lot of things about Galion when she moves on to Bluffton.
“I’m definitely going to miss my friends and my boyfriend’s in high school, too,” said Perkins. “Being around my family and close to home. I’ve been playing with the same people and having the same coaches for four years. It’ll be a big transition. I’m going to miss them.”
