Who's Got Next? (Profile)
Linda Sayavongchanh, born April 29, 1984, in Des Moines, Iowa, is the middle child of three siblings. Her family left the refugee camps of Thailand and headed straight for the United States in 1979. They landed in Des Moines, Iowa where her uncle had already resided. Growing up in a pre-dominantly white neighborhood, Linda had a lot of Caucasian friends. Linda’s athletic ability was discovered by her elementary school P.E. teacher during gym class. Her teacher noticed that she was pretty good at basketball and advised her to sign up in an organized basketball league. Linda’s parents agreed with the idea and that was the beginning of her career. Linda realized that basketball was her sport because she enjoyed playing it so much. She would play against her older brother and his friends, and pick-up games with the other boys from the neighborhood.
During her college years, Linda played the point guard position for Drake University. Standing at 5’ 9”, she helped guide her team to a 17-12 record during her senior year (2005-06) and a trip to the WNIT tournament. Unfortunately, her team fell short in their opening game against the University of Nebraska in a 62-59 loss. In her final season, Linda scored a total of 249 points, averaging 9.2 points per game. Linda hustled to get 61 rebounds during her final season on the court while playing in 27 games. Following an impressive four year playing career at NCAA Division I Drake University and a one-season shift as a student assistant coach at the same institution, Linda makes her UMD debut in 2007-08 as a graduate assistant coach.
Over the course of her career, Linda has received many awards and accomplishments. She was named Iowa's Miss Basketball and the Class 4-A player of the year while playing for Lincoln High School. In college, Linda was named All-Missouri Valley Conference Honorable Mention on three occasions, an MVC all-tournament selection in 2004 and an MVC Scholar-Athlete during her final season in a Drake uniform. She also received MVC All-Defensive team honors three-years in a row. Linda’s legacy at Drake stands: holding the single season record for steals with 105 in 31 games for a 3.4 average, which she set in 2003-04. Holding 266 steals for her career, which places her second on the all-time career list at Drake. She finished her career with 379 assists in 99 contests, good enough for a 3.8 assists per game average, which put her at No. 9 on Drake's all-time career charts.
Linda graduated in the spring of 2007 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education with concentrations in mathematics and coaching. She is currently pursuing a Masters degree in education from Minnesota Duluth.
High School Stats: Named Iowa's Miss Basketball by the Iowa Newspaper Association, named 2002 Class 4A player of the year by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association, three-year starter and four-year letterwinner at Lincoln with team compiling 84-16 record in her four seasons, team ranked seventh nationally by USA Today, holds school career records for points (1,630), steals (475) and assists (428), averaged 20.4 points, 5.4 assists and 5.2 steals as a senior for top-ranked team in Class 4A that reached semifinals of state tournament. Averaged 17 points, three rebounds and five assists as a junior, three-time all-state pick, earning first team honors as a junior and as a senior by the Iowa Newspaper Association and the Iowa Girls Coaches Association, named Central Iowa High School Player American, named Iowa's Gatorade player of the year, three-time first team All-CIML Metro Conference selection, selected to Iowa Basketball Coaches Association Goalsetter Girls' All-Star games where she averaged 11.0 points, 2.5 assists and 3.0 steals for the Southwest team, member of the National Council on Youth Leadership, high school coach was Jerry Schartner.
Interview:(by Laoville staff)
What type of music do you listen to? Who is your favorite artist or band?
A: I am a music lover so I listen to almost everything except for country! I listen to R&B, Alternative, Pop, and Trance. I don't really have a favorite artist or band since I like a lot of different things. But right now, on my IPod playlist, there's a mix of Paramore, Timberland, Secondhand Serenade, Panic at the Disco, Jack Johnson, and some trance!
Have you ever been to Laos?
A: I have never been to Laos but I would like to go visit sometime within the next 10 years.
Who is your favorite basketball player, male or female? Why?
A: I grew up a HUGE Michael Jordan fan since that was about the time that I started playing basketball. I would watch him play on T.V. and mimic his moves in my drive way!! I wore #23 from the day I started playing basketball until the end of my college career!
What are your plans for the future?
A: I graduated May 2007 from Drake University with a BS in Elementary Education. I am currently pursuing a master’s degree in Education at the University of Minnesota Duluth and I am also, a Graduate Assistant Coach for the women's basketball team. I want to coach at the college level after I get my Masters.
As a role model to the young Lao girls out there, what do you want to say to them?
A: Some advice I would give to aspiring young athletes is to just believe, work hard at what you do, and strive to be better!!!
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Contact the writer: Laoville.com