There are moments throughout an athlete’s career that are important to them for a variety of reasons. Whether it is an unexpected win, reaching a personal milestone, or something else, these moments are something that is ingrained in their mind. 

For Nowata’s Skylar Stevens, his favorite sports moment is a big upset win.

“I think my favorite moment while playing sports happened on the basketball court,” he said. “We were playing Oklahoma Union, who was ranked number two in the state. We ended up beating them by twenty-five points. It was a great team win and it was an awesome experience.”

Skylar is a senior at Nowata High School. He plays basketball, golf, and tennis for the Ironmen. Away from sports, he is also a member of the National Honor Society and the student council.

While he enjoys playing sports, Skylar says he has a few people to thank for helping him with his game and getting to where he is today. 

“The biggest role models in my life are my parents, Corey and Jamie Stevens,” he said. “I would have never fallen in love with sports if it wasn’t for them. Also, my little brother, Daeton Stevens because he always challenges me and hypes me up to get better every day.”

Another person that has been intricate to Skylar’s success on the court is his coach.

“Gary Hollingshed has been my coach since the sixth grade,” he said. “He has helped me develop in every way in basketball and in life.”

Stevens has invested a lot in order to be a successful athlete, but he says he knows that the work will pay off.

“I have spent a lot of hours and time that I didn’t feel like doing anything,” he said. “I have missed vacations and time I could spend with my family in order to make a practice or a scrimmage.”

The teammates he competes alongside also do a great job of helping Skylar to improve and become his best “I like all of my teammates,” he said. “But there are two that I like to work against in practice the most. Kaleb Bashford and Eli Savala have pretty good defense which pushes me and makes me better.”