Althea Latoya Byfield (born 28 November 1982 in Kingston, Jamaica) is a Jamaican international basketball and

netball Netball is a ball sport played on a court by two teams of seven players. It is among a rare number of sports which have been created exclusively for female competitors. The sport is played on indoor and outdoor netball courts and is specifical ...

player. Byfield has represented Jamaica in both sports, and is a current member of the Jamaican netball team.Jamaican national netball team: Senior squad
. Retrieved 16 February 2009.

Early life

Althea Byfield was born in Kingston on 28 November 1984, the daughter of Tony Byfield and Jean Rumble. She also has a twin brother, Ian. Byfield attended high school at The Queen's School in Jamaica, and subsequently travelled to the United States to attend Midland Junior College in Texas.

Basketball career

Byfield played basketball at Midland in the 2001–02

Western Junior College Athletic Conference The Western Junior College Athletic Conference (WJCAC) is a junior college athletic conference for many technical and community colleges within the Southwest states of Texas and New Mexico, sponsored by the National Junior College Athletic Associa ...

season. In 2002, she transferred to

Texas A&M University–Commerce Texas A&M University–Commerce is a public university in Commerce, Texas. With an enrollment of over 12,000 students as of fall 2017, the university is the third-largest institution in the Texas A&M University System. Founded in 1889, the inst ...

, majoring in

kinesiology Kinesiology () is the scientific study of human body movement. Kinesiology addresses physiological, anatomical, biomechanical, pathological, neuropsychological principles and mechanisms of movement. Applications of kinesiology to human health ...

, but did not play basketball until the 2003–04 season. In that season Byfield started in 16 of 19 games played, averaging 7.1 points and 6.3 rebounds per match; she was also named Lions Newcomer of the year. In the following season, Byfield was the only player in the

Lone Star Conference The Lone Star Conference (LSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Member institutions are located in the southwestern United States, with schools in Tex ...

to be ranked in the top ten players for rebounds (3rd), assists (10th) and steals (3rd); she also had the seventh-highest minutes played throughout the LSC season, averaging over 33 minutes per game. The 2005–06 season saw her playing time reduced, somewhat due to a larger playing bench. Byfield was also part of the Jamaican national women's basketball team selected to compete in the Caribbean Basketball Championships in 2006, and subsequently at the 2007 FIBA Americas Championship for Women. (''Note: The FIBA incorrectly reports her name as "Atlhea Byfield".'') As of October 2008, she was playing for the Metrobelles in the Jamaican National Basketball League.

Netball career

As a member of the Jamaican U21 squad, Byfield won a silver medal at the 2000 Netball World Youth Championships in Cardiff. Later, she was a member of the national squads that participated in the

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

and 2007 Netball World Championships, with Jamaica winning bronze medals in both tournaments. In 2010, she featured in Jamaica's Commonwealth Games campaign in India and won bronze at the

2010 World Netball Series The 2010 World Netball Series was the second edition of the World Netball Series, an annual international netball competition held under Fastnet (netball), fastnet rules. The 2010 event was held in Liverpool, England, and was contested between the ...

in England. In domestic netball, Byfield plays for Jamalco in the Jamaican Netball Association Open League competition, having previously played for Waulgrovians and Blades United. In 2008, Byfield was signed with the

Central Pulse Central Pulse are a New Zealand netball team based in Wellington. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Championship. Since 2017 they have represented Netball Central in the ANZ Premiership. Netball Central is the governing body that r ...

in New Zealand for the

2009 ANZ Championship season The 2009 ANZ Championship season was the second season of the ANZ Championship. The 2009 season began on 4 April and concluded on 26 July. Melbourne Vixens were minor premiers. With a team co-captained by Bianca Chatfield and Sharelle McMahon, ...

. She became one of the team's standout players, although the Pulse finished their season in 10th place. Byfield transferred to the

Northern Mystics Northern Mystics are a New Zealand netball team based in Auckland. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Championship. Since 2017 they have represented Netball Northern in the ANZ Premiership. Netball Northern is the governing body tha ...

in 2010 as their starting goal keeper. She was not signed for the 2011 season.

References

External links

2010 ANZ Championship profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Byfield, Althea Jamaican netball players Jamaican women's basketball players Commonwealth Games competitors for Jamaica Netball players at the 2010 Commonwealth Games Northern Mystics players Central Pulse players Texas A&M University–Commerce alumni Sportspeople from Kingston, Jamaica 1982 births Living people Jamaican twins Twin sportspeople ANZ Championship players Basketball players at the 2018 Commonwealth Games Jamaican expatriate netball people in New Zealand 2003 World Netball Championships players 2007 World Netball Championships players 2011 World Netball Championships players