In November the 17-year-old was selected to be apart of the NSW Swifts Academy for 2022, a program that hopes to strengthen and develop promising athletes, providing a pathway of development into the NSW Swifts Suncorp Super Netball (SSN) team.
With the other 29 athletes selected from around NSW, Sami says she's excited to be joining them in Sydney next year for the academy.
"It's really exciting. It's always been what I've wanted to do, move to Sydney, get my name out there and get into their system. It's definitely the next step for me," Sami said.
The program will consist of up to three high-performance court sessions per week, three strength and conditioning sessions, as well as programs involving performance analysis, skill and movement mentoring, sports psychology and recovery.
Sami says her preparation and growth over the years wouldn't be the same if it weren't for the coaches and friends from her local club South Canberra Netball Association (SCNA).
"As a junior I was always playing up with older girls and South Canberra put a lot of time and effort into me, always allowing me to play in higher divisions," Sami said.
"I've been lucky to have quite a few coaches who have made a massive impact. Heidi Prowse and Paula Sharpe have really helped me get here, and more recently Mel Clarke and Kate Carpenter have also been a big influence.
"I was trialling for everything I could, just trying to get my name out there which was definitely beneficial, and all of the day in, day out training, the hard work has really paid off."
Sami knows the friendships she's made over the years have kept her passion for the game, one in particular is childhood best friend Harriett Sharpe.
"We have played together since kindergarten and that friendship has really helped me get all the way through to now. Making friends has always been such an important part of netball for me," Sami said.
Thankfully for Sami the big move won't be done alone, as one of Sami's friends will be joining her in Sydney to attend university. But before moving, Sami is attending the national AUS development camp from the 6th to the 10th of December.
It is Sami's second year of camp, and she will be joined by fellow ACT athletes Jessica Berry in her third camp, and Hayley Matthew in her first camp. It is this exposure that allows the girls to experience playing alongside other states, and develop them further.
"It's always exciting, especially as we get to go down to Sydney and play with different girls from different states. We get to learn a lot more from different coaches which creates a lot of variations and gives us different perspective as well," Sami said.
"It's always nice going down with other people, especially Jess who has been for three years, it's Hayley's first and my second so it's nice to be going together."
