Emilie Lafond already had one very good reason to “trust the process”.
This year, it appears that she has discovered another.
Honing her basketball skills as a teen, Lafond spent time at both Ecole secondaire catholique l’Horizon as well as Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School before joining the Laurentian Voyageurs in the fall of 2020.
A contributor to the program since the moment that Covid released its unappreciated hold on the entire world of amateur sports, the 22 year old 4th year student (Health Promotions & Concurrent Education) has seen her impact grow steadily, hitting double digits points per game (10.6) last year.
And for as much as her team has recorded more losses than wins during her time at L.U., there is a passion for the sport that has allowed Lafond to forge ahead, almost always with a smile.
“I was always told that you have to trust the process, but in order to trust the process, you have to be in love with the process,” suggested the 6’3” imposing post presence. “It really does come down to a love for the game.”
“I really enjoy being in the gym, being surrounded by my teammates, my coaches. I love the team aspect of the sport, being part of something that is bigger than me – and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to play post-secondary basketball.”
By its very nature, “trusting the process” implies that there will be a reward, of some sort, in the end. As Lafond noted, there must be a belief that “at the end of the day, you get what you put in.”
As the 18 OUA teams break for this holiday season, Lafond sits dead even with Jenna Button of Western, leading the entire loop in scoring with 18.7 points per game. While I may stand to be corrected, the Voyageurs have not had a contender to this specific throne since Cassandra Carpenter took the OUA by storm in a storied career that stretched from 2003 to 2008.
If the “nose to the grindstone” mantra has been part of the Emilie Lafond package since day one, the offensive outburst this year represents an evolution of sorts in her game, a notable difference in her work in those toughest of areas to score.
“Last year, I was playing way more with my back to the basket,” said Lafond. “During the summer, my coaches talked about having me develop more of a face-up game, still getting the ball in the post but with my face to the basket.”
“We worked on that during the summer.”
Certainly, some of the thought process here was predicated on some turnover in the roster, creating a need for Laurentian to look differently at exactly how their attack was designed. It also implied a major change for the young woman who has always been tall for her age.
“I learned basketball with my back to the basket,” said Lafond. “Most posts (post players) play with their back to the basket. I learned to play offense that way. This year, I kind of knew that I would have to take a few more shots per game. I have to make the proper read in the moment, which is an adjustment.”
Mind you, this is just the latest in a series of metamorphosis on so many levels for the Valley East native who enjoyed a “name” in local basketball circles from a relatively young age. Like others who came before, Lafond would run face-first into the reality that university basketball is a whole other animal from the game that she knew in high-school.
“It was a big switch in terms of the commitment, the amount of hours that it would take to get me to where I am right now,” she said. “I was able to get some individual skill work in with coach (Jason) Hurley during the summers, training five days a week.”
“It’s a big commitment, a sacrifice, but I am glad that I did it.”
And when she does need reminding that the importance of the journey far exceeds the end result, Lafond drifts back to the very reason that she plays in the first place.
“The goal every year is to try and get to nationals, but we do break it down, just trying to get 1% better each and every day,” Lafond explained. “And we love to have fun. If there is music playing at practice, some of us will just break out and start dancing or singing. We play “Heads Up” on the bus, which is kind of a charade game.”
And when adversity hits, as it definitely did following a recent 57-52 loss to the Nipissing Lakers in North Bay in a contest that Laurentian had every reason to believe it could win – well, kids will be kids.
“We were down after the game but while we were waiting to get on the bus to go home, we had a snowball fight, just to lift up the mood,” said Lafond. “Little things like that are the times I will always remember” – and the moments that help make it easier to trust the process.
