By By Matthew Nascone
Injury would keep most people in the world from continuing on with the same attitude, but Escambia Academy has a senior who does not let such a setback get her down.
Jaime Drew is in her final year at EA and she is on her third sport of the year. Drew has been involved with cheerleading, basketball and softball for her entire career at the Academy.
"Jaime is the type of player that every coach wants to have on their team," EA softball head coach Darrell Jackson said. "She will play hurt and she never complains."
Drew was sidelined in her sophomore year after an early-season injury in basketball. She tore her ACL and meniscus in her left knee, but with a determination that Jackson said was commendable she returned for the final two months of the softball season in April.
"I missed competing and contributing to the team," Drew said. "It was hard to be sitting on the bench and I was so happy when I was able to return."
The humor portion of her personality came out a lot when Drew was on the bench with her injury, Jackson said.
Drew will use jokes and chants during softball games to lighten the atmosphere and make sure her teammates are never stressed about the game and Jackson said her overall personality is her best attribute.
"She is a pleasure to have on the team and she is a great example of a young lady that you wish was your daughter," Jackson said.
Jackson said Drew is the player on the team who will always find the bright side of any situation.
"She always has a positive outlook," Jackson said. "I don't think I have ever seen her completely down about anything. And if she makes a mistake you don't have to tell her about it, she already knows. She gives me her best all the time."
The competitive nature that can be found in Drew can be somewhat attributed to having a brother around the same age to play against. Joe Drew is that brother and he is also a senior basketball player at EA.
"My brother and I would always compete against each other in everything," Drew said. "We are really close and we would do everything together."
Parental support is another factor in a good athlete. Drew said her parents, Kelly and Jennifer Drew, are at every game they can attend.
Drew does like to do the normal high school nuances like shop, hang out with friends and go to the beach.
"I am like any other normal girl, I like to shop," she said.
A career in sports after high school is something Drew said she would love to accomplish, but she is not planning on it. Instead the salutatorian of her graduating class, Drew is pursuing academic scholarships from several colleges including the University of Alabama.
If the scholarships do not pan out she said she would like to attend Jefferson Davis Community College or Faulkner State Community College and maybe play softball.
"I am hoping to get some kind of scholarship and if I don't get it then I will go to Jeff Davis or Faulkner and try to play softball," Drew said. "I think I would have the best shot to play at the next level in softball instead of basketball."
The future is always a tricky concept for 18-year-old high school students, but Drew said she knows what she wants her life to be like in 10 years.
"I hope to be out of college with a good job and maybe married," Drew said. "But being married or not is not important, that will happen when it needs to."