This pharmacy student's a star on the basketball court

How do you balance five hours of basketball every day with a full academic schedule? If you’re Gage Grassick, not only do you make it work you make it a slam dunk. The first-year pharmacy student at the University of Saskatchewan is successfully combining her passion for sports and patient care by pursuing her pharmacy degree while scoring big with the Saskatchewan Huskies.This year the university team’s point guard from Prince Albert, SK, posted one of the best statistical performances in Canada West history, earning her the Nan Copp Trophy (player of the year in university sports). To top it off the Huskies won this year’s national championship for women’s basketball with Grassick scoring a season high 35 points in the final game. “Winning national was an unbelievable experience,” says Grassick who has been on the team for four years. “I just love the atmosphere in playing basketball…and surrounding yourself with a community of people who push you to be the best person you can be.”Read: New digital platform to empower patients to make better OTC decisionsAs a child growing up in rural Saskatchewan, Grassick say she was always playing a varity of sports and thought she’d end up focusing on volleyball. Then her highschool coach encouraged her to join the women’s basketball team for the first time and it just felt right. “My goal was then to play at the university level and through some amazing coaching and great people I met along the way, I ended up here,” she says. As for pharmacy, Grassick was inspired by her cousin who was pursuing a pharmacy career. After finishing her undergraduate degree in kinesiology, Grassick shadowed a pharmacist and was smitten. “I just fell in love with it and everything pharmacy stands for as a profession,” she says. Her average day starts with an early gym session and full day of classes, followed by basketball practice which wraps up at 7 p.m. “It really comes down to time management,” she says. “One of the best things about sports is that you learn quickly never to procrastinate.”Read: Teen addressing drug shortages with new tool for pharmacistsShe counts Summer Masikewich, Libby Epoch, Dalyce Emmerson and Erica Gavel among her basketball heroes, but is also quick to call out her other teammates, coaches and faculty at U of S for their support. While she is considering going to Europe to play pro after graduation if the opportunity arises, Grassick says her ultimate goal is to own her own pharmacy one day. “I also want to take a couple of placements in rural Saskatchewan to see how much of a difference pharmacists can make in a small town,” she says.

This pharmacy student's a star on the basketball court

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