Maija Lahde Makes National Team of Finland
7/19/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
July 19, 2005
Finland - Maija Lahde has a lot of dreams and aspirations, and one of those dreams is to play basketball for her country. Lahde, heading into her sophomore year at Saint Mary's, can now cross one of those dreams off her long list.
 | "It's an honor to have a chance to represent my country." Maija Lahde |
After grueling tryouts and practices last month in Finland, Lahde earned a spot on the National Team of Finland, which is preparing for the European Championship Qualification Round.
"This has been one of my dreams since I started playing basketball when I was eight years old," Lahde said. "It's an honor to have a chance to represent my country. This is a huge step for me in my basketball career. I'm so in love with this sport right now that it's hard to think about anything else."
 Maija Lahde says she's gaining valuable experience.  | |
Lahde and the National Team of Finland have participated in three games against Slovakia, winning two of them, and will now play against Turkey, Kroatia, Germany and Canada, before the European Qualifying Round. In the European Qualifying Round, Finland will play Poland and Hungary twice, in hopes of advancing.
Lahde said the team is made up of 12 players, with six of those players playing at the Division I level, including Seton Hall, St. John's, UTEP, Binghampton, and Oakland. The rest of the team is made up of professional players who compete in Europe.
"Practices and games are extremely challenging and I'm learning a lot of new stuff," Lahde said. "We have a really tough practice schedule and we are also traveling a lot. We are playing against good teams that have some WNBA players on their rosters."
Finland's first game in the European Championship Qualifying Round against Hungary is set for August 10. Finland will then face Poland on August 13, Hungary on August 19 and Poland on August 22.
"Even though I'm enjoying my time here in Finland and I love wearing my National Team jersey, I can't wait to put on my Saint Mary's uniform again," Lahde said. "Hopefully I will improve with my experiences with the National Team and I can help the team more this upcoming year."
Lahde played in all 28 games and started 11 games, including eight West Coast Conference games. The 6-foot, 1-inch forward averaged 5.9 points and 4.9 rebounds per game. During conference Lahde averaged 6.2 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. Lahde also finished the season strong, recording a double-double in three of her last six games.
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