MISSION —Sharyland Pioneer’s Jordan Bravo primarily made her presence felt on the defensive side of the ball as a freshman, averaging 4.7 steals per game along with 8.2 points.
One year later, she was thrust into the limelight, taking over as the team’s point guard after then-junior Audry Hornaday went down with a season ending ACL injury.
Bravo thrived in her new role, increasing her scoring average by more than five points per contest to help guide the Diamondbacks to their second straight district championship.
“I think the injury was a blessing in disguise for Jordan and for us as a program,” Sharyland Pioneer head coach Nicole Villarreal said. “Jordan’s sophomore year was our first undefeated district championship. She was forced to take on a different role and she embraced it.”
Since then, Bravo has continued to evolve into one of the Valley’s most lethal weapons on the hardwood, increasing her scoring average each season, while maintaining the same defensive energy she showed as a freshman.
With her growth, Bravo earned an opportunity to play at the next level, signing with Concordia University on Tuesday at the Sharyland Pioneer Gym. Concordia University is a Division III program in Austin which competes in the American Southwest Conference.
“It feels great just knowing all my hard work is paying off,” Bravo said. “It just felt like home when I visited the school. It’s a really nice campus. There (are) a lot of things to do in Austin and the coaches just showed a lot of confidence in me.”
After a dominant junior season, which featured Bravo leading Sharyland Pioneer to a Sweet 16 appearance, she felt motivated to continue evolving her game, Bravo said, beginning to work with basketball trainer Mo Kings.
Bravo credits Kings for her continued growth on the court as a senior, recalling her first meeting with her trainer.
“The first time I met him, he told me I’d never become a threat if all I could do was shoot from the 3-point line,” Bravo said. “Months after that, my brother and I started training with him every other night. We worked on getting my ball handling quicker, attacking the basket harder and perfecting my shot.”
Her offseason work with Kings translated onto the hardwood, averaging a career highs in points (20), rebounds (8.1) and assists (5.1) per game as a senior.
Bravo, The Monitor’s 2021 All-Area Girls Basketball Player of the Year, was named District 31-5A’s offensive MVP for the 2022 season, while also earning a spot on the district’s all-defensive team. She also earned national recognition, being nominated for the 2022 McDonald’s All-American game.
She put the exclamation point on her prolific four-year career by finishing No. 1 on the program’s all-time scoring list, tallying 1,618 career points.
“I didn’t expect it,” Bravo said. “It kind of just happened over the years. Working on my range really helped and being more aggressive really helped too. It felt great. I felt like I deserved it because I worked really hard for that.”
Bravo plans to major in kinesiology while at Concordia, with a focus in occupational therapy.
