Page 34 - Amarillo Senior Link Magazine 2020 Spring - Online Magazine

HONORING SENIORS
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Senior Senior

Dixie Bell Gonzales

Deep in the

Heart of Dixie

or the last twelve years, her best mentors.
basketball has played a huge part Dixie learned by Macayla Warren
Fin who I’ve become. One of my that hard work
coaches, Dixie Gonzales, has helped and never giving
shape me into the person and player up can get you where you want to be.
I am today. The summer before my By her junior year, she had received a
junior year, I was blessed to have Dixie full scholarship and the starting point
as my club basketball coach. During guard spot!
the school year, I had broken my
collarbone during basketball practice, Throughout the four years Dixie was
had surgery to repair it, and was just at WT, her team won three conference
beginning to play basketball again after championships, one regional
three months of rest. Coming back, I tournament championship, and had
was nervous to play as physically as I one national tournament appearance.
had before because I didn’t want to get Her hard work had paid off. Dixie said,
hurt again. Dixie pushed me physically “You can accomplish anything with
and mentally for four months, and God in your life and a little (a lot of)
with her help, I was able to overcome hard work!” This mentality has carried
my fear. over into her life in many ways.
Dixie’s own story inspires me. At the When I met Dixie, we instantly
end of her senior season, she wasn’t clicked—she is like an older sister to
sure if she wanted to play college me. As I trained with her that summer
basketball but decided to follow in her before my junior year, my goal was
brother’s footsteps to West Texas A&M to regain my position on varsity. In
and walked on her freshman year. the first game of the season, I guarded told me to Dixie. For a long time, I did
Walk-ons aren’t always given the same a girl who averaged 25 points. I not think all the hard work and time
chances as recruited athletes, but that was able to keep her to nine points. I was putting in was going to pay off
didn’t stop Dixie. Her first two years However, as the season went on, I was because I was not seeing results. I was
were hard; she recalls questioning her getting benched more and more until still sitting more than I wanted, but
decision. Was she wasting her time? I wasn’t even stepping on the court Dixie kept encouraging me. She told
Was she good enough? Her older at all. I spoke with my school coach me about her struggles and successes.
brother and grandfather had both multiple times to see what I needed I challenged myself that, if she could
played sports at WT and were among to improve and took everything she earn a scholarship after being a walk-

34 Amarillo Senior Link