Alita “The Assassin” Blouin heads to Coupeville High School this fall, ready to turn hard work into success. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
They call her “The Assassin” for a reason.
Off the court, Alita Blouin is a strong, smart, highly-motivated young woman.
On the court, she’s all those things — and also a stone-cold killer.
Of all the athletes headed to Coupeville High School this fall, Blouin is the one I most feel confident in hailing as a star.
She has talent, which she has shown on the volleyball and basketball court, and will soon bring to the tennis court, but it’s more than that.
During her middle school days, Blouin showed a fieriness, an unwillingness to back down, which is too often missing in Coupeville athletes.
That was key to success in volleyball, where she was a leader, and in basketball, where she sliced ‘n diced rivals both as a passer and shooter for a Wolf 8th grade team which went undefeated.
You can read more of my thoughts on the rare qualities Blouin brings to Wolf sports by popping over and reading an article from last year:
Heart of a Wolf, heart of a champion!!
Now, no one can truly know if middle school success will translate to high school stardom.
Sometimes everything clicks, other times life intrudes.
Most of all, it’s not fair to put too much pressure on a young woman yet to attend her first class as a CHS freshman.
But Blouin, with a solid support crew headed up by parents Shawn and June, and younger brother Ryan, seems built for success.
And it all starts with her positive attitude.
“My strengths as an athlete are taking criticism and applying it to how I play,” Blouin said. “I also always look for a way to give one of my teammates a good opportunity to succeed and work together in the process.”
She’s very close to many of those teammates, which helps her both be a leader and work together for the greater good of the team.
“Being an athlete helps me make a stronger bond with my teammates/friends,” Blouin said. “It helps me bring out my competitive nature.
“And playing sports is just overall really fun.”
Meshing well with the other young women on the court is one of Blouin’s primary goals, and it extends not only to those her own age, but to the upperclassmen she will soon join.
“My goal as a high-school athlete is to create stronger bonds with my older teammates, so that we can all have chemistry while we play,” she said.
“And also, so I can learn from them, since they have more experience than I do.”
While she’s already achieved some athletic success, Blouin isn’t content to rest on her laurels.
Instead, she has a clear vision of the future, and what she and her teammates can accomplish over the next four years, if they continue to grow, both as individuals, and in a team framework.
“I would like to work on my self-confidence,” Blouin said. “Many times I miss out on an opportunity simply because I don’t believe in my own abilities.
“Also, I would like to win, and maybe make it to state for at least one of my sports.”
While she enjoys basketball, and is looking forward to trying out tennis, the first high school sport she will play claims the biggest part of her heart.
“My favorite sport is volleyball, because when you are playing, you get rushes of adrenaline during rallies and this rush of energy makes the game so exciting,” Blouin said.
“Especially when the point is won and everyone is cheering, it just makes me really happy.”
When she’s not competing or practicing, Blouin also excels in the classroom, enjoying art, math, and computer design.
She helped create the CMS yearbook as an 8th grader, spends time painting and drawing at home, and will bravely tackle both geometry and algebra at the same time during her freshman year.
As she makes the jump to high school, Blouin knows she isn’t alone.
Her family and friends, many of whom play sports alongside her, will always be there to provide support at crucial moments.
“My teammates have had one of the biggest impacts on the person I am today,” she said. “Mostly (fellow basketball starters) Maddie (Georges), Gwen (Gustafson), Carolyn (Lhamon), and Nezi (Keiper).
“We all push each other and help each other improve as athletes,” Blouin added. “We are all very competitive with each other and that is why we are competitive when we play in games.”
Before and after she steps on the floor, she gets a different kind of support from her family, with extended members, from grandparents to cousins, often filling a chunk of the stands at her games.
“My parents also have always believed in me since day one,” Blouin said. “They always tell me what I do well and what I can improve on next time.
“Without them I wouldn’t have the opportunity to be an athlete.”
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