GROVE CITY — Sedona Campbell readily admits there were times during her high school basketball career at Slippery Rock when she strongly disliked the sport.

“I hated it,” Campbell said bluntly. “In high school, I was going through the motions.”

Campbell, though, can't really point to the reason why she carried so much disdain for basketball at that time.

If she was simply play-acting, it didn't show on the court.

During her senior year with the Rockets, Campbell averaged a team-leading 12.3 points and seven rebounds per game for the District 10 5A runner-up.

After she graduated, Campbell had designs on playing in college at Lebanon Valley, but decided both the school and the sport no longer appealed to her.

She transferred to Grove City College and had little intention of joining the basketball team there this season as a sophomore.

Until Wolverines' coach Chelle Fuss intervened.

“I was on the fence for awhile,” Campbell said. “Coach pulled me in her office and told me I needed to make a decision one way or another. I decided to say yes.”

That was this spring, giving Campbell ample time to re-commit to basketball.

It wasn't easy. She still carried a love-hate relationship with the sport.

“Basketball comes naturally to me,” she said. “But I've never liked going to the weight room.”

But Campbell decided if she was going to do this she was going to do it all the way.

Her return — and hoop rebirth — has paid dividends for both Campbell and the Wolverines.

Campbell has already made a big impact this season for Grove City, averaging 9.9 points and 6.4 rebounds per game off the bench.

The 6-foot center had a double-double (17 points, 11 rebounds) in her first collegiate game. She had another double-double a week later and has scored 27 points in her last two games.

Campbell is also playing significant minutes, averaging 20.9 on the season.

“I'm not really surprised; I scored points in high school,” Campbell said. “The biggest surprise is as a sophomore the minutes I've played. I knew I could do it.”

This isn't Campbell's first comeback.

After a breakout freshman season at Slippery Rock, Campbell tore her ACL and missed all of her sophomore season.

She returned to average 9.1 points and 5.1 rebounds as a junior.

Fuss said Campbell is filling a vital role for Grove City this season.

Campbell is playing behind 6-3 starting senior center Laura Buchanan.

“She's doing a good job diving into the culture we have here,” Fuss said. “She's bought into what's best for the team.”

Grove City plays fast, especially on defense, and Campbell has been one of several bench players who has excelled in the system.

“She's a very hard worker,” Fuss said.

Campbell said she's enjoying basketball more now than she ever has.

“I really like my teammates and I like playing for them and want to win for them,” Campbell said. “Laura Buchanan has really helped me. She teaches me what to do in practice and going up against her has made me better.”

Campbell said she hasn't set any goals for herself this season — or for the rest of her career, for that matter.

Instead, she insists she merely wants to play and have fun — something she hasn't always done on the basketball court.

“I don't like to set goals,” Campbell said. “I feel like if you set goals and you don't achieve them, you're just letting yourself down. If you're not happy, you're not going to play well and you're not going to have fun. I just want to have fun.”