How State College basketball’s Maya Bokunewicz’s love of competition has set her up for success
Growing up with two older brothers, Maya Bokunewicz was always the last player picked in neighborhood basketball games.
Despite her brothers’ best efforts to not have their little sister around, Maya was always there.
Eventually, the now-star senior for State College High School and Rice signee earned her place on the court with her brothers, and the annoyance of her being there turned into a competition.
“On signing day she said, ‘I don’t think I’ll ever play against girls as hard as I played against my brothers,’” Christina Bokunewicz, Maya’s mother said.
And in competition is where Maya thrives.
It is her favorite part of the game of basketball and one of the big reasons she is going to be continuing her academic and athletic career in Houston next year.
These lessons in competing all started in the family’s backyard outside of Philadelphia.
“The same group of guys, they would play softball or wiffle ball,” Christina said. “And when she was little they would say, ‘Hey, everybody move in,’ and she would hit it over everybody.
“She just always wanted to compete with her brothers and with boys, and that’s what she did.”
Maya was coached by her father, Rob Bokunewicz, until she was in sixth grade, and that is where the fundamentals of her game were born.
“We did ball handling so much,” Maya said. “So many people tell me ‘you’re so tall and you’re so good at ball handling.’ So just my dad keeping me at the guard position, not letting anyone move me into the post, because that’s definitely made me a much better player just from when I was young.”
But it wasn’t until the family moved to central Pennsylvania when Maya was in seventh grade that Maya saw basketball as something more than a game she would play with her brothers or practice with her father.
“I didn’t really know which direction I was going to go in sports,” Maya said. “My basketball career kind of took off when we moved to central Pa., which is pretty awesome to think about.
“So I don’t really know what it would have been if we would have stayed where we were. I didn’t even really think about playing college basketball until it all just kind of fell into my hands.”
Maya started playing AAU basketball for Central PA Dynamite in middle school, a nationally competitive team based in Altoona.
Once again, she had to compete.
“It was a challenge for her because she didn’t have a lot of playing time because she was new to the team,” Rob said. “She really earned her playing time, but once she got playing time, people might have been here watching this one player and now they see this player coming off the bench that they didn’t know about.”
And soon the Division I offers followed.
“Some of my teammates were (getting exposure), which drew crowds to my team. And then in the ninth grade, I got my first Division I offer,” Maya said. “Certain schools started coming to watch my team play. Some of us wanted to play college basketball, but at the time, I didn’t even know what that was, and what it would look like.”
At the same time, Maya also entered high school and started playing for new head coach Chris Leazier, which was the start of a very special four years.
Throughout her high school career, Maya has become a household name around Centre Country, leading State High to success on the court.
“I think my just my overall experience coming in as a freshman, playing with some older seniors, just working through it growing as a player on the court, a student in the classroom and just my knowledge of basketball in general,” Maya said. “I remember some key wins, we won the District 6 title my sophomore year, and then let this year we’ve had some good overtime thrillers, I won’t forget.”
In fact, Maya remembers that district championship victory over Altoona well, as she once again was the underdog and had to compete.
“We had lost to them prior in the season. And it was played at Penn State Altoona. We kind of just all came to play,” Maya said. “I just remember the feeling of being kind of like the underdog. Just executing everything. It’s really not about the better team. It’s about the one that plays the best.”
As her final district playoff experience in a State High uniform is set to get underway at 6 p.m. Friday against Altoona at Mount Aloysius, Maya is cherishing each and every high school memory she has left.
“It’s flown by, but I’ve had times along the way where I felt like this should go quicker,” Maya said. “But, the more I just look back on it, you know, those memories are just so impactful and will be in my future, just knowing that every step of the way contributes to you as a person.”
Maya is certainly a player that Leazier is going to miss, but not just because of her exceptional talent.
“I hope the State High girls basketball fans have an appreciation for what they are seeing,” Leazier said. “You don’t get one of these kids all the time. I mean she is just special.
“And what is great about her is obviously she is a very dynamic player, she’s a willing and able defender, she’s a dynamic scorer, but the thing about Maya is that she is an unbelievable teammate. She wants us to win. We’re gonna miss her, State High girls’ basketball fans are going to miss her, she’s just been a privilege to coach here.”
In fact, Maya is going to leave State College with an impressive resume, including reaching the 1,000-point milestone and garnering numerous all-county honors and a McDonald’s All-American nomination.
Now, Maya is preparing to take the next step and continue her basketball career at Rice, a school that is the best-case scenario for the star player.
“I chose Rice mainly because of the balance between the academics and athletics that they offer. So I wanted to go somewhere that would support my academic ambitions, as well as my future goals for myself as a player,” Maya said. “Rice really, really was on board with me, and what they had from my vision as a player and person.
“So I think going to a top academic school like Rice and then also getting to play against the best players in the country all at the time is a super great deal. I couldn’t really turn it down.”
Maya is striving to go to medical school after her four years with the Owls is over, a goal that Rice has supported 100 percent.
“They have other players in that field, whereas some of the other schools were like ‘oh, you’re gonna miss the lab,’ whereas Rice was like, ‘oh, we’ll make sure you get every lab,’ so in that regard that being very supportive of her studying outside,” Christina said. “It’s very exciting for her to be at such a strong academic school. That’s what she wants, 40 years, not four.”
This simple saying — “40 years, not four” — which was said multiple times by the entire family, sums up Maya, a student-athlete who has competed in everything she has done since her days of backyard wiffle ball games.
And despite what uniform Maya is wearing in the future, this mindset isn’t going to change.
“I want to go further than Rice has ever gone in the tournament,” Maya said.
This story was originally published February 19, 2020 at 5:19 PM.
