She encourages local entrepreneurs and small businesses to set up tables alongside the court and promote their products. Sierra also proudly admits that while she is a one-woman show, the league would not exist without the help of her friends and family. I have to show up in a variety of ways, and that is what allows me to be in tune with all sorts of different individuals.” Sierra values the versatility the ASWBL requires of her. “In corporate America, you work one job and know what you have to do: it’s the same role every day, and you experience monotony. Some days I need to be in the shoes of a player and ask myself: What are the things I would expect if I were to play in my own league? What do I want ‘Her’ experience to be? Other days I need to be the commissioner of the league and operate at a higher level- making large decisions and putting my ask in at a larger table.” I must be able to speak and articulate what I need to others.” I must decide and prioritize what needs to get done. “My entrepreneurship journey is very different. “In my corporate role, I was working for someone else, and the jobs were given to me with clear expectations,” said Sierra. But her new role came with some surprises. Sierra credits her former corporate position for giving her the discipline and high-level knowledge she needed to be an entrepreneur. There are two underlying factors behind Sierra’s success: Ana’s ability to successfully apply her corporate knowledge and learnings to her own operation and prioritizing the energy and support she receives from friends and family. So what makes the ASWBL a successful, growing semi-professional basketball league? They strive to build strong youth and families through compassionate healing, education, and empowerment.īuilding a grassroots women’s basketball league is not an easy task, and successful leagues can be hard to find. UCAN serves and impacts over 21,000 at-risk children, youth, and families across Illinois. Fillmore Street, and tickets are $10 for adult entry. Games take place on Tuesday and Thursday nights in Lawndale, Illinois, at the UCAN gym on 3640 W. This year the season began at the end of October and will run for just over two months. There are around 60 women who play in the ASWBL across six teams. “And when you come to the ASWBL, you can count on the fact that you are going to see other women that look like you.”Īna wears many hats she is the league commissioner, team captain, organizer, player, and accountant. “I wanted to create an environment, a family, an organization that is solely for women and girls,” remarked Sierra. She immediately sought out similar outdoor neighborhood runs that she found in the Bronx, but she quickly realized the culture she was seeking was scarce in Chicago. It was the outdoor basketball environment that served as a cornerstone for Ana’s high school and collegiate basketball career.Īfter completing her academic and athletic pursuits at West Virginia State University, Ana moved to Chicago in 2010. While Ana admits the games were mostly male dominated in NYC, she was still able to find a strong women’s basketball community. She grew up in the Bronx and was exposed to neighborhood pick-up basketball at a young age. She decided to pursue her own business full-time, a pro-am women’s basketball league, and officially step into the world of entrepreneurship.Īna was only eight years old when she fell in love with the game of basketball. In 2019, Sierra was let go from her corporate job and made the nerve-wracking decision to take on a major career change. The ASWBL began back in 2015 and is currently run by a one-woman show– Ana Sierra herself. On October 27th, the Ana Sierra Women’s Basketball League kicked off its eighth season.
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