Tyndall Airman makes All-Armed Forces basketball team twice Published Dec. 23, 2005 By Staff Sgt. Benjamin Rojek 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. (AFPN) -- Making the Air Force Women's Basketball Team is difficult. Making the All-Armed Forces Women's Basketball Team is even more challenging. And making both teams twice? For Senior Airman Mariela Miles, it was reality. Airman Miles, a 5-foot 8-inch shooting guard from Missouri, helped lead the Air Force team to victory in the 2004 and 2005 seasons. She had plenty of previous on-court experience to take her team to the top. Although there weren't many opportunities to play basketball before high school, Airman Miles knew it was the sport she wanted to play. "I participated in track until high school, to help keep in shape for basketball," she said. "When I got into high school, women's basketball had become more popular, and I finally got to play." Airman Miles with the 823rd Red Horse Squadron here, played basketball all four years of high school. Her skills earned her a full-ride basketball scholarship to Illinois State University. "I played at Illinois State for two years," she said. "We didn't have successful seasons. We won only 11 games." In her third year of college, she transferred to the University of Missouri at St. Louis. But the stresses of playing ball and keeping up with school work eventually got to her. By the end of her junior year, she decided to figure out what her next step would be. "I didn't want to be complacent and get a meaningless job," Airman Miles said. "The military seemed like the best opportunity." Her interest in the Air Force didn't just come out of the blue. Both of her parents served in the Air Force, as did one of her brothers. After finishing her training in the services career field at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, Airman Miles was stationed at Eglin AFB, Fla. Her love for playing basketball took her to the base gym where she played pick-up games. It was there that she was asked to join the base team. "One of my teammates mentioned the Air Force team, so I decided to try out," she said. "When I got to the try-outs I was surprised. All the girls there had played some level of college ball." She was one of 20 women who tried out for the Air Force team. Over a two-week period, eight people were cut. Airman Miles joined the remaining 12. "I was surprised, because I hadn't played ball in a year," she said. "I wasn't sure of my level of competition." Airman Miles understood how well she played when the Air Force team took down the Army, which had only lost twice since 1978. She was then selected to play with the All-Armed Forces team -- a team made up of players from each branch of service. Airman Miles' team went on to play in the Las Vegas Pro-Am tournament. This year, Airman Miles decided to try out for Air Force team once again. She beat out 30 women to make the 12-person team. "Coming back to try out, I had a different perspective from the last year," she said. "This time I had a position to lose." She didn't lose her position or the Armed Forces tournament. Afterward, she was not only selected for the All-Tournament Team, but also for the All-Armed Forces team again. This time the team participated in the International Military Sports Council tournament at Naval Base Ventura County, Calif., going up against teams from the Netherlands and Kazakhstan, as well as the Los Angeles Police Department's Women's All-Star Team. "That was a really big deal," Airman Miles said. "That was the first time the women's team represented the United States in an international tournament." As long as her supervisor will give her the permission, Airman Miles said she is planning to try out again for 2006. Whether or not she makes it, she's just happy being on the court. "I never thought I'd be playing ball when I joined the Air Force," she said. "I just went out to play pick-up games at the gym." (Courtesy of Air Education and Training Command News Service)