Underwood on TV

14 years ago

 ASHLAND, Maine — Connie Harold of Ashland has never been a regular watcher of the CBS hit reality show “Survivor” … until now. Her 26-year-old niece, Ashley Underwood, is one of the contestants on “Survivor: Redemption Island,” which premiered last Wednesday.
Underwood, who was Miss Maine 2009, lives in Benton. While playing basketball at Cony High School under coach Paul Vachon, University of Maine at Orono offered her a three-year scholarship to play for the Black Bears.
“Ashley is so feisty she told them, ‘I don’t think you’ll be disappointed if you pay for four years,’” said Harold, “so they offered her a four-year basketball scholarship instead.”
Underwood played for the Black Bears from 2003-07, averaging 10.1 points per game. She is ninth on the all-time scoring list at UMO with 1,195 total points over her four years.
“After graduating in 2007 with a nursing degree, she signed a contract to play professional basketball in Geneva, Switzerland,” Harold said. “It’s rare that people play ball for all four years in college, but Ashley did, and received her nursing degree at the same time. We were all very happy about that.”
Ashley is the daughter of Theresa and Chuck Underwood. Chuck is a charter member of the 1989 University of Maine at Presque Isle Athletic Hall of Fame. Theresa Underwood and Harold are sisters.
Until this season, Harold admits the only time she had previously watched “Survivor” was when Bob Crowley was on. Ironically, Crowley’s wife’s cousin is Sarah Brooks who taught at Ashland High School for many years. He went on to win his season, “Survivor: Gabon.”
“I’ll be watching this season for sure,” said Harold. “I don’t quite understand all of the strategies, but my wish is that Ashley gets the popular vote. I think she went far in the competition because she lost about 30 pounds, but she’s not allowed to discuss anything about the show – including how she did – until the season finale.
“I remember calling my sister and asking, ‘What’s going on with Ashley?’ I knew she had been selling coffee, doing some modeling in Boston and was overseas with friends and I asked, ‘Where is she?’ and my sister said, ‘She’s on a missionary trip,’” Harold said. “Ashley’s very faith filled and I thought, ‘Oh, she’s helping the poor.’ As it turns out, she was competing for $1 million in Nicaragua.”
Once Harold realized her niece had been a contestant on the long-running reality series, she said she was very surprised.
“I was thinking, ‘How can anyone do that?’” she said. “The new twist this season is if they’re kicked off, they go to an island by themselves. I’m thinking, ‘I’m scared of the dark in Ashland, Maine … how could I ever picture myself doing that?’ but that’s Ashley … she’s mentally tough.”
Watching last week’s episode, Harold, who works at Northern Physical Therapy in Presque Isle, said Underwood was “very smart to keep her mouth shut.”
“I think she played smart,” Harold said. “Ashley’s done her homework; she was one that always studied other basketball players when she was playing, and she did the same thing when she was preparing for the Miss Maine and Miss USA pageants, and I’m sure this game isn’t any different. She’s very head smart.
“I think Ashley’s feisty enough to do well on ‘Survivor.’ She loves a challenge; she loves to play the game and likes the psychological part of it as much as she does the physical part of it,” her aunt said. “She likes to try new things, she’s very health conscious, and is driven. Ashley’s a problem solver and wants people to know that you can still be athletic, but maintain your femininity.”
If Underwood has a “weakness,” Harold said it’s her close bond with her family.
“That was her issue when she was overseas; she missed her family terribly. Ashley’s very family oriented … she’s one of 45 cousins and she’s missed a lot of family functions. That – to me – is a drawback for her; she is absolutely upset when she misses all these things. That might be her downfall.”
The Ashland community is supportive of Underwood and hopes she will be crowned “Sole Survivor.”
“People have lotteries going, and are very excited. My husband’s cousins are posting her picture everywhere and my sister sent up some signed photos of her in her crown. Much like with Bob Crowley’s connection to the area, this is putting Ashland, Maine on the map. I think it’s wonderful that we’re getting some positive publicity in our northern state.”
Underwood was most recently a school nurse in SAD 49, which serves students from Albion, Benton, Clinton and Fairfield.
“Survivor: Redemption Island” airs at 8 p.m. Wednesdays on CBS.