By Kerri Kosten, The Dominion Post
MORGANTOWN — Fallon Nicholson was pretty young when she decided to play basketball. She credits her sister with giving her that desire.
“When I was growing up, I can remember sitting in the stands watching my sister play basketball, and every evening she would always be outside practicing, pushing herself to be better,” Nicholson said. “I was about 5 or 6 when I first started playing basketball.”
A Morgantown native, Nicholson is a 2017 graduate of Morgantown High School. She attends Bethany College, a small private, liberal arts school in Bethany, Brooke County.
As a freshman, Nicholson appeared in 26 games. She finished with 4.9 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game. She shot 75 percent from the free throw line, 37 percent from 3 and 36.2 percent from the field.
Nicholson said playing basketball at Bethany was very different than at MHS.
“It took me a while to adjust to the coaching style, different teammates, and, of course, the shot clock,” she said.
She was not the only Mohigan on the Bethany roster. Keyira Golden is also a member of the Bison basketball team.
“Playing with one of my teammates from high school was a blessing,” Nicholson said. “Since her ACL (knee injury) held her back last year, we didn’t get the chance to show everyone how well we play together.”
There were several factors that made Nicholson decide to attend Bethany College.
“I decided to attend Bethany College because its a super nice campus, the people are very friendly, and Keyira and I both decided to play basketball there,” she said.
Nicholson said her favorite thing about attending Bethany was working at the stables.
“While I was at school, I got to do a work study. As others might have chose the library, cafe or other options, I chose the Oglebay Stables,” she said.
Nicholson described Bethany itself as “a small, quiet little town. Not much is there compared to Morgantown.”
Though Nicholson had a successful first year, she decided not to return to Bethany College because it does not offer the major she wants to study.
“I went to Bethany for pre-vet medicine, but I am now going to attend Pierpont (Community Technical College) for radiology,” she said.
After graduation, Nicholson hopes to get a job as a radiologist. In her spare time, she enjoys hanging out with her family, as well as spending time with her dog, Willa.
