Maryland women’s basketball’s Summer Bostock is getting the full Division I experience

Photo courtesy of Erin Tudryn/Maryland Athletics | UMTerps

Bostock joined the team in January and will be available to play next season.

No player in Brenda Frese’s time as the head coach of Maryland women’s basketball has been in the situation Summer Bostock is in.

Bostock’s arrival comes during the opposite time of year as her name suggests, but the 17-year-old point guard received a warm welcome in College Park. She elected to forgo her senior year at Kings Christian High School in Canada to join Maryland for the spring semester.

Most high school seniors have proms and graduations to look forward to. Those are some lasting senior-year memories that symbolize the culmination of a high-school experience. But Bostock didn’t feel like she was missing much. This was an opportunity she couldn’t pass up.

“I have things I want to do with this program and I want to learn from one of the greatest coaches in college basketball,” she said. “If anything, I’m gaining something by coming [early].”

Had she stayed in Canada, she would still be taking eight classes and commuting around an hour to school.

Bostock can do everything except play in live-game action. She has gotten the whole experience of living the life of a Division I player. She’s been able to participate in team activities and is suiting up in red jerseys with the scout team for practices, but will wait until the 2023-2024 season to don the Terps’ Under Armour uniform with her name on her back. Frese may have described it best by saying Bostock is in heaven right now.

“Summer wants it all,” Frese said. “She’s thrilled by the fact she’s on the scout team, she’s in these drills with our team, she’s [lifting] on a strength program for three days a week, she’s getting individual workouts with our staff.”

Bostock is someone who will take on any challenge, which, for the situation she is in, says a lot about the type of player she is.

Frese admires her work ethic and obsessiveness to improve. During practice on Feb. 4, the 6-foot Bostock ran point guard duties doing half-court offenses. Across from her was a formidable matchup: sophomore guard Shyanne Sellers — one of the most talented second-year guards in the country.

“It’s good to learn from some of the best, like Diamond [Miller] for example,” said Bostock, who pointed out Miller’s intensity as something she looks up to. “She’s really good and I think it’s great to see how she plays and pick up a few things and learn from her.”

The following day, Bostock was on the bench for Maryland’s largest win over an AP top-10 opponent in program history when it beat No. 10 Ohio State, 90-54. Days later, she saw Maryland hand Iowa the largest loss of the Caitlin Clark era. She has seen the best of the Big Ten during a time when the conference and her Terps are taking the nation by storm.

Maryland was awarded a top-two seed in the NCAA Tournament set to tip-off on Friday in College Park against Holy Cross. It ended the regular season ranked No. 6 in the final AP Top 25.

Bostock immediately noticed the taxing workload put on Division I athletes from juggling class three days a week and practices. Her favorite course so far is called “Hoop Dreams: Black Masculinity and Sport.”

Senior forward Faith Masonius said Bostock has been adjusting well to this daunting transition.

“I think what I’ve seen so far, she’s the type of player, what she does on the court will speak for itself,” Masonius said.

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