Mark Gilbert is a key figure known throughout Sheridan High School through his ability to create friendships with the students he crosses paths with. Gilbert is a friendly individual involved in many extra-curricular activities including basketball and soccer. 

   Throughout the past four years, Gilbert has made his way to becoming a starting point guard for the Broncs basketball team through his hard work and effort put forth. Basketball is a significant part of Gilbert’s life, and his hard work has paid off. For most of the summer and off-season, Gilbert could be seen in the gym improving on the skills he needed in order to be beneficial to the team. Gilbert went to open gyms for basketball almost every day, and always encouraged others to come and get better, creating a sense of camaraderie within the culture of the basketball team. His hard work definitely paid off according to his stats within the Broncs’ first four games of the season Gilbert started out hot, shooting over 50 percent from the three-point line. 

   Not only is Gilbert a massive factor through his shooting on the court, another one of Gilbert’s traits that helps his team is his ability to be a floor general and facilitator. He passes the ball amazingly and can guide his teammates while on the court. Gilbert has a unique ability to see the play happen before it actually happens. Gilbert is just as effective off the court as he is on the court. “One of my favorite things about basketball is when the team is hyped and everyone is hyping everyone else up,” said Gilbert. Clearly, Gilbert cares deeply about his teammates and their success. Gilbert helps build team chemistry, which has played a major role in the team’s success early on. He builds a strong bond with each and every teammate, and that leads to everyone trusting each other on and off the court. “He is definitely an important piece on the team,” said junior Cael Hamrick. “He acts like the glue that holds the team together.

   Another thing that Gilbert does off the court is he runs the “_shsanklegraveyard” account on Instagram. This involves Gilbert posting comical videos of basketball players throughout the state, some videos featuring his own teammates playing defense; however, it ultimately ends up featuring them falling on the court. Although some videos involve his fellow teammates, it brings a sense of humor to the Broncs’ culture and makes the players more comfortable with each other. 

   The Broncs basketball team lost all their starters from last year, so Gilbert has really had to step up this year and be a leader. He is filling those shoes wonderfully so far. “One of the goals going into this season as a team was to prove everyone wrong and win,” said Gilbert. Heading into the season, the team was faced with lots of adversity and criticism. Most people thought they would not be very good since they lost so many valuable players; however, the Broncs won three and lost one in their first four games, proving the doubters wrong. “It was hard losing those players, but our team is still very strong,” said Gilbert. “Everyone knows their role and does a good job at it, whether it is being a main scorer, or just setting a lot of screens and getting rebounds.” Even after losing a lot of valuable players, Gilbert and his teammates are finding success. This success did not come easy though, as they have been working extremely hard going into this season. This year they even started having the varsity practice two times a day for a couple of days of the week. They have been conditioning hard to make sure that lack of conditioning will not be a problem during the game, and they can go harder in tough times in the fourth quarter.

   Gilbert does not know yet what he wants to pursue after his high school career is over. “I really want to play soccer somewhere if it is possible,” said Gilbert. Gilbert is thinking about playing soccer at Northwest College. He is taking a lot of difficult college classes in his senior year to help prepare himself for the next step. 

   Whatever Gilbert ends up doing, he has the ability to find success and make connections with other people. He will also be remembered at Sheridan High School for being a friendly, goofy, hard-working athlete.

   Gilbert is the son of Derek and Kim Gilbert.