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Former Northwest girls basketball standout Natalie "Nikki" Day was just shooting around in a gym while visiting family in St. Thomas during the summer of 2008. When she was approached by a woman claiming to be the U.S. Virgin Islands National Team coach, Day did not know what to think.

"It was kind of surreal," she said. "I was just down on vacation and shooting around and one of the coaches walked up to me and said she was working to put a team together. I didn't really take it seriously, but then I started getting phone calls and e-mails."

Day's mother was born and raised on the Virgin Island of St. Thomas, making her eligible to compete for the national team. She is currently in St. Croix training with the national team before it heads to San Juan, Puerto Rico for the Centrobasket Championships, July 10-14.

"It's special," Day said. "My mom [Marjorie Vanterpool] is from here, so it's kind of like I'm playing on her playground."

The Centrobasket Championships is a FIBA- (International Basketball Federation) sponsored tournament featuring teams from Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.

There are eight participating countries at this year's competition, divided into two groups.

The top three teams qualify for the 2011 FIBA America's Women's Championship and the top two teams will receive a bid to the 2011 Pan-American Games.

The U.S. Virgin Islands will face Jamaica in its opener, July 10.

"It's definitely a higher level of play," Day said. "I'm playing against pros here. I'm just a college player. It's definitely a different mentality. But this is kind of what I want to do after college, so it's kind of unreal."

Day transferred to the University of Portland (Ore.) in 2009-10 after spending her freshman season at Howard (D.C.). She was second on the team in scoring as a sophomore with 11.2 points per game; she also pulled down an average of 4.3 rebounds.

Day will have just two weeks to work with her Virgin Island teammates, none of whom she had met before this week.

"I don't think it will be weird," Day said. "It's kind of like how it was coming into college. Everyone here has family from the islands, so we feel at home. It's exciting. I've made friends I will have for a long time."

Day's feat is even more remarkable considering she has not been playing basketball for very long. A natural athlete, she tried several sports in elementary and middle school; her favorites were soccer and track. She did not pick up a basketball until her freshman year at Northwest.

Day is a self-proclaimed gym rat, though. A true student of the game, she loves to get in the gym and work on new moves. That's how she was discovered and given her ticket to Puerto Rico, after all.

While honored to compete at the international level, Day is intent on taking everything in and using those experiences to her advantage as she finishes out her college career at Portland and looks to continue to play basketball professionally.

"I just love the energy of basketball," Day said. "I love the adrenaline, being on a team and I love the competition."