For Gettysburg High graduate, family is vital part of her college basketball success

By STEVE HEISER

Family and basketball have remained the two unswerving constants in Anne Bair’s young life.

No matter where she traveled, she could rely on those two pillars to hold her up through every high and low.

Her journey started in Gettysburg, her famous hometown, known worldwide as the site of the battle that was turning point of the American Civil War. It was there that Bair grew up and gained local fame as one of the greatest athletes in the history of Gettysburg High School athletics.

It continued in the city that never sleeps, where she started her promising NCAA Division I college career at Manhattan University in the Bronx.

After two years at Manhattan, Bair decided she needed a new challenge and transferred to Colgate University, another D-I program located in New York state. Culturally, however, Colgate, which is nestled in the scenic Chenango Valley in the heart of the state, can seem worlds away from Manhattan.

Despite the culture shock, Bair enjoyed great success in her junior season at Colgate, but she also endured great uncertainty. Near the end of the season, the coach who convinced her to come to Colgate left for another job opportunity, leaving Bair with a decision to make — transfer again or remain a Raider.

Ultimately, after meeting with Colgate’s new coach, Bair recently opted to remain with the Patriot League contender. With that decision made, she can now focus on a senior season that she hopes will end in a serious postseason run.

Her senior season at Colgate, however, almost certainly won’t mark the end of Bair’s basketball love affair. After graduation, she’s seriously contemplating a pro playing career overseas, which could be followed by a stint in coaching, which has become the Bair family business.

And business has been very, very good.

“Ballin’ since birth:” Anne was born into a family where her father, Jeff, became a highly successful AAU and high school coach.

Her two older siblings also became standout players and coaches. Sean was 13 and Ellen was 9 when Anne was born, so it’s not surprising that Anne said she’s been “ballin since birth.”

She tagged along with her parents to her siblings’ games, learning the intricacies of the sport from an early age.

“My mom (Sarah) always jokes that as soon as I was born, the next week I was in a gym,” Anne said.

Despite her family’s large hoops legacy, Anne said she never felt any undue pressure to compete in the sport.

“I wanted to play because my dad was a coach, and my siblings played. But I also played soccer and did track in high school and cross country in high school. But I never felt like I had to be all-in for basketball when I was 6 years old — not at all. But as soon as I got a basketball in my hands, it was like this is what I want to do.”

It quickly became apparent that she did it very well.

“She always had a love for learning the game of basketball and why things are going on,” her father said. “Going to Sean’s games and Ellen’s games, she was always very inquisitive. When she got toward middle school, I knew she was going to have a really high basketball IQ and that can overcome a lot of deficiencies.”

With her father as her head coach, the playmaking guard finished her high school career at Gettysburg with 1,476 points and set the school’s all-time assist record, earning first-team all-state honors as a junior and senior. The Warriors were 94-19 during her four-year tenure as a starter and she led Gettysburg to PIAA District 3 Class 5-A titles as a sophomore and a senior.

“The most important thing she’s always done is make everyone around her better,” Jeff said. “She makes the game easier for everyone else.”

Winning those district crowns with her father created some lasting and special memories for Anne.

“Those were incredible days, nights and weeks. They were so awesome,” Anne said.

“I am extremely grateful for everything that he has brought to my life, especially on the basketball side of things. He’s taught me so much on the nuances of basketball and having a great basketball IQ, while also just being a great leader and teammate. He has coached me in the driveway since I was about 3, coached me in AAU since third or fourth grade and obviously coached me in high school. He pushed me, but he knew how to get the most out of me.”

On to college: Given her high school credentials, it’s not surprising that colleges would come calling for her services.

The 5-foot, 8-inch standout eventually chose Manhattan, where she appeared in all 33 games in her first season while starting in 10, including the final nine games of the season. She averaged 1.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists.

Her production increased sharply in her sophomore season for Jaspers, when she started 26 of 27 games and led the team by averaging 36.1 minutes per game. She ended her sophomore season averaging 9.0 points, 2.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.2 steals per contest.

Bair was enjoying her time at Manhattan, and she had nothing but good things to say about the coaches and players there, but she still wanted to check out her other options.

After about nine visits, she decided that Colgate was going to be the next stop on her playing career. She said it was the best fit for her academically and athletically.

“It really checked all the boxes for me,” she said.

Colgate, she believed, offered her a great chance to win and play immediately, while also giving the psychology major a world-class education.

She was not disappointed.

The Raiders finished the 2024-2025 season with the most wins in program history, finishing 23-10, including a 13-5 record in the Patriot League. They also got a berth in the Women’s National Invitation Tournament. Shortly before that WNIT game, however, Anne learned that Colgate’s head coach, Ganiyat Adeduntan, was going to take the same position at George Washington.

“Hearing the news of her leaving was hard … but I understand that at certain moments you have to make decisions that are right for you. But she was awesome.”

Anne, however, was committed to first talking with Colgate’s new head coach before making any decisions about her playing future. By mid-April, Colgate hired Shannon Bush, who had nearly two decades of D-I coaching experience.

Anne liked what she heard from Bush and quickly decided to stay at Colgate.

“Colgate is such a great place and such a great community,” Anne said. “I believe in our teammates that are returning and what we can do next year and was very confident that I wanted to stay. The deciding factor was when I was able to talk with Coach Shann and see her vision and share all of her experiences with really great guards and what she’s been able to do.”

Family matters: While her coaches may have changed, Anne could always count on her family to be her rock.

“It could make me emotional. They’re so special to me,” Anne said when asked about her family. “They’ve had a huge influence on the trajectory of my career and my life. … My family is the best.”

Her mother, although not a high-profile coach like Anne’s father and siblings, “is the one who tries to keep us all grounded and level-headed,” Anne said. “She’s always there for whatever I need, whether I need to vent or I need support or love.”

Her brother Sean is an assistant coach for the Penn State women’s program and formerly was a standout head coach for New Oxford High. Her sister Ellen leads the Philly Rise AAU program and also coaches The Shipley School team. Ellen also formerly led Linden Hall to three straight District 3 crowns.

“It’s funny. We are all talking about the same things,” Anne said about her siblings. “We’re living in the same world, Sean and I most closely because we’re at the same level. So that’s really cool. … It’s always fun to bounce ideas off of each other and talk basketball.”

Her family is not her only base of support. The Gettysburg community is near and dear to Anne’s heart.

“I’m so blessed to have grown up here. I will get texts from teachers, athletic trainers, community members, even refs. Gettysburg is an incredible place. My former teammates are so supportive of me. I love this town, and I feel so much pride in it. That was the fuel in my high school years to want Gettysburg to be the best and wanting to inspire future kids who are going to want to play at Gettysburg.”

Future plans: While her roots are in Gettysburg, Anne’s future may lie overseas.

After leaving Colgate, Anne may investigate playing pro basketball in Europe, or some other locale. She’s seen former teammates take a similar route and it intrigues her.

“I don’t know what my life will be like a year from now, but that’s always something that I thought would be awesome to do if I’m good enough. … I just can’t imagine my basketball career being over in a year. It seems so soon. To be able to know that maybe I can keep playing is really cool and something I’d be interested in. The travel piece, especially In Europe, where you can go everywhere, I think is awesome and really appealing.”

When she is finally done playing competitively, a future in coaching also looks possible, if not probable.

“I would love to coach, but I don’t know at what level. I definitely think I will want to coach, but I’m also very passionate about psychology, and sports psychology. I definitely think it would be very cool to work with athletes in that sense.”

If her past performance and work ethic are indicators, Anne’s future success seems likely, no matter the road she takes.

“I’m most proud of Anne’s progress in college and her continuing to improve. That doesn’t always happen,” her father said. “She was a big fish in a small pond and turned out to be a really competitive asset at the D-1 level. That’s great to see.”