SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine—Amanda Matos is Southern Maine Community College’s student-athlete spotlight of February. Standing five feet, five inches tall at the guard position, Matos is playing in her first season as a member of the women’s basketball team under Head Coach Katie Bergeron.
Matos, considered a sophomore, transferred to SMCC from Hollins University (Roanoke, Va.) in the fall of 2016. This semester she is taking a full course load of 18 credits in pursuit of her marine science degree. Matos plans to attain her associate’s degree from SMCC and continue her education at a four-year institution with aspirations of becoming a marine mammal veterinarian.
“The marine science program here is strong—the location is ideal,” explaining her desire to study at SMCC.
A native of Orlando, Florida, Matos is bilingual—her first language being Spanish. She attended Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fl.), a private, international college-preparatory school for two years. At Montverde, Matos was classmates with Los Angeles Laker’s guard D’Angelo Russell, the second overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft; she was one grade ahead of Louisiana State University (LSU) basketball superstar and the 2016 first overall pick, Ben Simmons.
Matos starred as a shooting guard at Montverde, an integral piece of an 11-1 team that earned a bid to the competitive Venice Tournament her junior season. She also played three seasons of volleyball in high school, one at a public Orlando high school and two at Montverde.
Matos has appeared in 13 of the SeaWolves’ 23 games this season, playing an average of 12.2 minutes per game. Spanning her time on the court, the sophomore has totaled 25 points, 31 rebounds, 16 assists, and 12 steals.
Reflecting on her athletic experience at SMCC, Matos said, “I’ve never been a part of a team with this level of chemistry. Coach Bergeron is very straight forward and never made it a secret as to what our goals are—she holds the highest expectations of us both on the court and in the classroom. If you were to come into the locker room, the attitude isn’t ‘we’re the best team in the country.’ We always have more work to do.”
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