"Outside the Lines" with Marissa Rivera
10/31/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Oct. 31, 2005
Hello all! My name is Marissa Lizette Rivera and I am a freshman on the TCU women's basketball team this year. This is my second year at TCU since I redshirted last year due to injury, so I am eager to play again! I am 19 years old and from Chula Vista, Calif., located in San Diego.Texas is very different from Cali, in all aspects. I'll admit, I was a little culture stricken when I got here. I remember meeting Jenna Lohse and hearing her twang, "Hey ya'll!" That's a lot different from the "Narly dude!" I was used to hearing.
This year, I really feel more comfortable being away from home and settled into TCU. I still love my mama and papa in California and miss them everyday. Luckily, I have been able to see them a lot because they visit me often.
My younger sister, Michelle, is a sophomore at my alma mater, La Jolla Country Day School. I had a blast playing high school and club basketball there with my best friend Candice Wiggins -- who plays at Stanford -- under coach Terri Bamford.
Here at TCU, I like to be a bum on off-days. By that I mean lounge around in my b-ball sweats, watch happy or thriller movies, eat my favorite ice cream, chocolate chip cookie dough, and my favorite candy, Junior Mints, get pedicures and sleep in my big bed -- in that order! I also like to do things with my friends whenever I am not playing or studying. We have great times being crazy! I also have family dear to me in New York, Puerto Rico and Jamaica, which are all extremely fun places to visit.
I feel it's important for everyone to know us girls off the court, which is why I think "Outside the Lines" is a cool thing. We really are a fun bunch and I am very grateful to be surrounded by such a good group of talented girls every day.
As for this year, I am extremely excited to be playing at the caliber we are. I think we can be very successful and have fun winning a lot. One of my highlights for the year will be when we play at San Diego State in January. I will be so pumped to play on the same floor where I won 4 CIF championships with my high school team. My other highlights include seeing the DMC packed and all the fans going crazy as we take on our opponents this year. Hopefully, we will be going to Cancun, Mexico, in a few weeks as planned to play in a tournament.
I hope you all know me a little better now, and I hope to see you come and watch us have a great year!
