As a 6-foot-2 center, Julisa Vega patrols the paint on offense and defense for the women\u2019s basketball team at Presentation College, an NAIA school in South Dakota.\n<\/p>\n
Off the court, the Watsonville High graduate dreams of doing a different kind of patrolling. And in various ways \u2013 some perhaps obvious, others not so much \u2013 her college basketball career is preparing her for it.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
A criminal justice major, Vega aspires to one day be a police detective. She interned with the Aberdeen, S.D., police department last semester, juggling a full course load with her basketball commitments as she explored her desired career path. <\/p>\n Vega mostly went on ride-alongs with trained detectives, peppering them with questions about their careers as they cruised the streets of Aberdeen \u2013 a small town by California standards, but South Dakota\u2019s third-largest city (pop. 28,562). \t<\/p>\n Perhaps luckily, Vega didn\u2019t encounter many of the tragic or scary situations that police often deal with. Still, she did confirm that police work is what she wants to do with her life.\n<\/p>\n \u00a0\u201cI wanted to see if, in the future, I could handle myself,\u201d Vega said. \u201cI knew if I couldn\u2019t handle it now, I wouldn\u2019t be able to handle it later.\u201d\n<\/p>\n Vega has already had to handle a lot in her basketball career: In four years, the senior has played for four different coaches at three different schools \u2013 each in different parts of the United States.\n<\/p>\n She started out at Southern Vermont College. The small NCAA Division III school, which only had roughly 250 students, closed following Vega\u2019s freshman season.\n<\/p>\n Because Vega and her teammates had grown so close, the news was devastating. \t<\/p>\n \u201cWe didn\u2019t win many games because our chemistry wasn\u2019t fully developed,\u201d Vega recalled. \u201cBut we were excited for next year because we had that year of experience on our backs. It was rough.\u201d <\/p>\n Not ready to call it quits with school or basketball, Vega returned home for the 2019-20 season and played at Cabrillo College for a year.\n<\/p>\n \u201cIt was nice being home,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was nice being able to be around family. It was nice coming back to a place where I knew somebody \u2013 I wasn\u2019t going back to a whole new place with people I didn\u2019t know.\u201d\n<\/p>\n Given that it took place early in the COVID-19 pandemic \u2013 when travel restrictions were still in place \u2013 Vega\u2019s recruitment to Presentation was done entirely via phone and Facetime. Still, she forged a strong enough connection with the Saints\u2019 then-assistant coach, Aimee Burmester, and her future teammates that she was willing to leave home for another part of the country again.\n<\/p>\n \u201cThey gave me a feeling of family, and I liked that,\u201d Vega said.\n<\/p>\n Unfortunately for Vega, Burmester left after she committed to attending Presentation. Still, she bonded with Burmester\u2019s replacement, Carley Jeffery, who is now the school\u2019s head coach.\n<\/p>\n Jeffery said Vega\u2019s ability to connect with a variety of personality types \u2013 something made necessary by her basketball journey \u2013 is exactly what makes her cut out to be a police officer.\n<\/p>\n \u201cHer ability to build relationships with people is great,\u201d Jeffery said. \u201cShe has the ability to relate to any age of person \u2013 our team has volunteered with kids and with older people. She has the ability to relate to people from all different walks of life, from all different backgrounds.\u201d\n<\/p>\n Basketball has also prepared Vega for a law enforcement career by instilling discipline, teaching her to work as part of a team and preparing her for the physical rigors of the job.\u00a0 It helps that at 6-2, she can be physically imposing.\n<\/p>\n She can also be rather authoritative, according to Jeffery.\n<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s not the most vocal person,\u201d the coach said. \u201cBut when her teammates hear her voice, they turn and listen.\u201d\n<\/p>\n In addition, Vega has a gift for being a light in dark situations, Jeffery said. That\u2019s been necessary this season, as Presentation has struggled to a 4-10 record.\n<\/p>\n \u201cIf anyone needs a pick-me-up during the day, a lot of times it comes from Julisa,\u201d Jeffery said. \u201cShe breaks the ice in tense situations with her humor.\u201d\n<\/p>\n All of these things, Jeffery believes, make Vega more valuable to the Saints than her statistics might indicate: Vega has averaged just 1.4 points and 1.4 rebounds in just 8.4 minutes of action. Vega had one of her best outings of the season on Saturday, though, scoring four points \u2013 one away from matching her season high \u2013 in addition to grabbing three rebounds and blocking two shots in Presentation\u2019s 77-68 victory over Waldorf (Iowa).\n<\/p>\n Vega said she may take some time off after graduating from Presentation before she enrolls at a police academy. However, she\u2019s eager to apply everything she\u2019s gotten from basketball to her chosen career.\n<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very much a people person,\u201d she said. \u201cInteracting with dozens of people every day helps me get people to open up and be able to trust me. Basketball has taught me to be a good communicator.\u201d\n<\/p>\n County Connections runs every other Thursday during the academic school year. If you have an update on a local college athlete, email Ray Hacke at raydhackelaw@gmail.com.\n<\/p>\n Women\u2019s basketball<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n Haley Jones (Santa Cruz native\/Archbishop Mitty), Stanford, Jr.<\/strong>:\u00a0The 6-foot-1 guard recorded her fourth double-double of the season Jan. 2 in the Cardinal\u2019s 82-44 triumph over Washington State: Jones scored a season-high 24 points, hitting 10 of 14 shots from the field, and also grabbed a team-leading 16 rebounds against the Cougars.\n<\/p>\n Jones also had 12 points, seven rebounds and a team-high four assists last Friday in Stanford\u2019s 80-68 win over Oregon. She shot perfectly from the foul line against the Ducks, going 6-for-6.\n<\/p>\n Jones followed up her performance against Oregon with 15 points, seven rebounds and three assists on Sunday in Stanford\u2019s 66-50 victory over Gonzaga.\n<\/p>\n Men\u2019s basketball<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n Kaijae Yee-Stephens (Santa Cruz High), Cal State San Bernardino, R-Jr.<\/strong>:\u00a0The guard scored six points \u2013 all on 3-pointers \u2013 and grabbed four rebounds last Thursday in the Coyotes\u2019 83-60 victory over Cal State Monterey Bay. He also dished out two assists and made one steal.\n<\/p>\n Women\u2019s wrestling<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n Greta Gustafson (Santa Cruz High), Simon Fraser (Canada), Fr.<\/strong>:\u00a0Wrestling unattached, the 109-pounder reached the final in her division on Dec. 18 at the Women\u2019s West Coast Tournament of Champions in Rocklin. Gustafson lost to teammate Alexia Seal by technical fall in the championship match.\n<\/p>\n \u00a0\n<\/p>\n \u00a0\n<\/p>\n \u00a0\n <\/p>\n<\/div>\n![](\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/www.santacruzsentinel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/STC-L-COUNTY-0113-03.jpeg?fit=620%2C9999px&ssl=1\")
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COUNTY CONNECTIONS<\/h3>\n
HIGHLIGHT REEL<\/h3>\n