Kizzah Maltezo is a basketball star at Central Washington University
ELLENSBURG, Wash. (BVM) 鈥� Although she is one of the smallest players on her team, standing at 5-foot-2, Kizzah Maltezo鈥檚 spirit and love for the game makes her the biggest player on the court. Her hard work, determination, and faith in herself got her to where she is today; one of the most respected basketball players at Central Washington University.
Maltezo started her basketball career in the sixth grade. Starting out with volleyball, Maltezo soon realized that she wanted to try something new and joined her friends on the middle school basketball team.
鈥淚 just wanted to join my friends on a sports team,鈥� Maltezo says, 鈥渂ut I never knew I would make it this far.鈥�
Born and raised in Honoka鈥檃, Hawaii, Maltezo graduated high school in 2016, immediately transitioning into the college athlete life at Concordia University in Portland, Oregon. Being a collegiate athlete was one of her biggest goals in high school.
鈥淐oach Sean Kelly (Concordia head coach) was the only one at the division ll level to give me a chance,鈥� Maltezo said, so she rolled with it and decided to give it her all.
She played at Concordia for four years, but once the school decided to shut down, due to financial issues, she entered the transfer portal and landed at Central Washington University for her last two years of eligibility.
Her decision to play at Central Washington was motivated by wanting to stay in the same conference that Concordia was in. Maltezo had connections on the CWU basketball team and reached out to her friend for a helping hand. Once she was in contact with the head coach she fell in love with the program, admiring the team鈥檚 style along with the coaching.
鈥淭he shoe fit, the grass is green, the sky is blue, Kizzah is going to Central,鈥� Maltezo said after being asked how she felt about committing to Central.
Maltezo said her biggest struggles during college ball has been the challenge of balancing everything. She explained that her freshman year of college was rough because she lacked the skills of staying organized and knowing when to pick studying over being social with friends.
鈥淚t takes a lot of sacrifice to play in college,鈥� Maltezo said.
However, her love for the game stayed consistent even through the tough times.
鈥淚f you want something you have to work for it and go get it鈥�, Maltezo preaches.
Due to Maltezo鈥檚 hard work she was able to make it to the 1,000 points club off of a three against St. Martins this season. Maltezo says that getting to that point has been a goal of hers since her freshman year at Concordia.
She then set a Central school record for making the most three-pointers in a single season while averaging 18.9 points, 1.4 steals and 2.9 assists.
Maltezo plans to graduate in March of 2022, with a dream of potentially playing basketball overseas. But she also plans to attend graduate school to become an athletic trainer. Maltezo currently assists the athletic trainers at Central, helping athletes in the training room.
