Work Samples

Where Are They Now? Chanel Murchison

March 26, 2010

By David Driver
For the Stafford County Sun
Used with permission

STAFFORD — Chanel Murchison, a former basketball standout at Colonial Forge High School in Stafford County, remembers exactly when she tore the ACL in one of her knees.

It was Dec. 14, 2008 against Mountain View High School in the district opener at Colonial Forge.

The injury forced Murchsion to be a redshirt last season as a freshman at William & Mary of the Colonial Athletic Association.

“I knew I had the ability to help my team but I wasn’t able to do it,“ she said. “I forced (teammates) to work hard in practice.“

After practicing with the Tribe last season Murchison returned to action this season as a redshirt freshman guard/forward for William & Mary, which lost to Hofstra, 66-50, in the first round of the CAA tournament at JMU in Harrisonburg earlier this month.

Murchison made seven starts during the regular-season and played a season-high number of minutes and had a career-best six rebounds on Feb. 11 in a win against JMU, which ended up as the No. 2 seed in the CAA tourney.

“It was a great experience as a freshman, knowing these teams are some of the best and coming in and doing my best,“ she said. “Some of our key players were out against JMU. A few have us had to step up big and that was our opportunity to do that.“

This season she played in 28 games, with seven starts, and averaged 12.0 minutes, 1.6 points and 1.9 rebounds per outing.

“I am delighted with the outcome of the season,“ Murchison added. “I am happy with the progress I made from the beginning of the season to now.“

The Tribe was 12-18 this season after going 14-17 last season while Murchison was out of action.

Murchison said it was difficult to sit out last season for the Tribe, who are coached by Debbie Taylor. She practiced with the team on a regular basis and attended home games but did not travel with the team.

“I felt like I hadn’t played in a real game in so long,“ she said.

One positive outcome of her redshirt season was that she had more time to make the adjustment to the academic demands of the Williamsburg school.

Murchison said she plans to spent most of this summer in Williamsburg, working on her game and making strides towards a degree.

The Stafford resident said she did not seriously consider other schools once William & Mary began to recruit her.

“I jumped at the opportunity,“ she said. “It was close to home; it is a great academic institution. I love the environment. The coaches were great and the girls were great when I visited.“