Yellowhorn earns a spot in Cougars’ den

Justin Seward
Times Reporter

 

First Nations Athletics member and Siksika’s own Tyis Yellowhorn recently earned himself a spot on the Mount Royal Cougars basketball team, another triumph that continues to be inspirational to his family, his team and community.
The goal of First Nations Athletics is to assist their athletes with gaining confidence and reaching their full potential.
Over the years, Yellowhorn has racked up numerous accomplishments including basketball league MVP, an all star in volleyball and three-time Athlete of the Year for each year he attended Chestermere High School.
Last year, playing for the Chestermere Lakers, he led the team in assists and points en route to the teams 37-1 record.
His skills and dedication have not only attracted attention from his coaches, but his community.
First Nations Athletics owner, Billy Gorrell, knew there was something special about Yellowhorn when they profiled him as one of their athletes.
“When Tyis had his profile posted, our social media, in regards to what he brought to the table was huge,” said Gorrell. “A lot of people in the Calgary area, the sports community, the Piikani Nation, the Kainai Nation and the Tsu T’ina recognized what he was doing. The impact he is having is needed in our community, he is a role model for those kids and he can show those kids that anything is possible and it’s just by playing basketball and focusing his time and energy on something positive.”
Yellowhorn’s piqued interest in sports goes back to his Grade 7 year at Crowther Memorial High School when his parents, Mar Nai and Shay, coached him.
Tyis’s dad was influential through his athletic career, having taught him how to play basketball at age of five, and contributing to his ambition of acting as a role model to his younger brothers.
“It was always important to my parents that I played in basketball to get an education. I’m just excited and can’t wait to get things started,” said Yellowhorn. “I know I first became a role model through my two younger brothers and I just wanted to set a good example for them and I help inspire them, the way my dad inspired me.”
Having both of his parents attend Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) fuelled Yellowhorn’s desire to play the game. However, according to his father Shay, the game came naturally to him.
“The one year when he got a little older, we introduced him to basketball and he just took to it right away,” recalled Shay.
Yellowhorn has tremendous vision on the floor and that is what his father thinks has made him successful this far.
“He’s a good kid,” said Shay. “His basketball IQ, he’s a smart player on floor. He reads the game really well, he could see plays developing and it was just a matter of his athleticism and catching up to his peers.”
While the Cougars expectations are not as demanding in the first year, Yellowhorn hopes to learn and become a better player as his tenure with MRU goes on.
“Just building for the future I want to become a better player,” he said. “It might not happen this year, it might not happen next year, but later on down the road I just want to be able to help my team win.”
He added it will be difficult at times being a student-athlete, but knows he has the support from his family to get through them.
Yellowhorn’s former coach at Chestermere High School, Rob Wilson, saw tremendous growth in him over the three years he coached him.
“I think he’s always been very talented,” said Wilson. “He’s one of those guys that puts in a lot of work and a lot of effort into playing. I’ve seen him improve since he was in Grade 10 into his Grade 12 year, where he was just a premier player in the province of Alberta.”
Wilson added that his hard work and dedication to the sport made players around him better, which played a big factor in the high school team having one of its better years in recent history.
He plans to enroll in business come the fall.
“I’m pretty excited about it, just to start the next chapter in my basketball and academic career,” said Yellowhorn