Quite a few athletes were cast on The Bachelorette season 18, but Bachelor Nation is also curious to learn more about Michelle Young's basketball career over the years. As it stands, the two first episodes of Michelle's season of The Bachelorette have made it clear that she is a great teacher and basketball player. Despite being a late addition to Matt James' season of The Bachelor, Michelle got to the very end and captivated fans with her personal story, professional background, and athletic career.
So far, Michelle has had a no-nonsense approach as the lead of The Bachelorette season 18 that many viewers are appreciating. She is nothing but polite and respectful toward her group of men, but she also isn't tolerating any shenanigans or games being played for the sake of reality TV. Overall, Michelle has been a breath of fresh air to this format of The Bachelorette. As if she wasn't already so impressive, Michelle also happens to be an accomplished basketball player.
Over the years, Michelle Young stood out as a very talented basketball player all throughout high school and college. In 2011, Republican Eagle described Michelle as a Woodbury High School senior student who won the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award at the Minnesota Girls Basketball All-Star Tournament. The publication called Michelle a "lightning-fast guard" who happened to be "one of the greatest Woodbury players of all time". Over the course of her high school career in basketball, Michelle "netted 1,023 points, which was the seventh-best total in Woodbury High School history," the publication reports. It was then noted in the article that Michelle was going to attend Bradley University starting in the fall with a basketball scholarship. In 2011, the Star Tribune also featured Michelle in its All-Metro Girls' Basketball team as one of the best female players of the year.
The official website for Bradley University listed Michelle as one of the players in its female basketball team roster for the 2014-2015 season. At that point in time, Michelle was already a senior in college. The page described her as a 5'9" guard who majored in Elementary Education. According to Michelle's year-to-year bio, she appears to have played basketball throughout her entire time at Bradley University. She went on to receive various awards and honorable mentions throughout the years for her performance on the court.
Many former athletes cast on The Bachelor over time didn't really have successful careers in the sport they came from. However, Michelle was undoubtedly an excellent basketball player who succeeded in the sport throughout high school and college. It is certainly exciting to know that Michelle can stand her ground not only on The Bachelorette and in a classroom, but also on the basketball court.
The Bachelorette season 18 airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.
Sources: Republican Eagle, Star Tribune, Bradley University