"It would be very hard probably," she said.

"I enjoy playing it with all my friends and competing and it's a release for me."

But it's a different story for many of Jade's contemporaries.

A 2019 Australian Youth Confidence Report found about 50 per cent of girls leave sport entirely by the age of 17 and by age 14, many girls are dropping out of sports at twice the rate of boys.

But why?

Six Albury women, who are Basketball NSW I AM A GIRL scholarship program recipients, are conducting a research project to find out.

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Scholarship holder Elizabeth Sayers said the intent was to encourage women and girls to stay involved in the sport whether as a player, referee, coach or an administrator.

"Research shows that girls drop out usually from 13 or 14 onwards, so the research intent is to look at why girls drop out," she said.

"It might be being mentally unwell, it might be because of peer pressure, it might be because there's too many commitments outside of sport, there's many reasons we know could exist, we're keen to drill down and know why and understand what the reasons are for girls and women in Albury and beyond."

The research findings will be used to inform strategies to help keep girls and women involved in basketball.

Albury basketball legend Lauren Jackson said basketball had a rich tradition of supporting female athletes.

'We want to make sure we're giving all girls every opportunity we can to succeed and give them the pathways," she said.

Ms Jackson said the benefits of sports went beyond promoting a healthy lifestyle.

"The attributes they get from working in team environments, like leadership skills, communication, I think just social skills in life, they're the things that you can't read them in a book, you actually have to live them, you have to experience what it's like to be a part of the team environment, where you've got to collaborate and work with people, sport does that," she said.

"The one thing I've found in sport, even as an adult, is when I'm fitter and I'm stronger I feel better about myself and that gives me more confidence, so there's a lot of positives.

"It's so important that the next generation is invested in ensuring that sport is safe and equitable for girls, now and in the future".

All current and former female players from the Albury-Wodonga area have been asked to complete an online survey for the research project.

The link to complete the survey is https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/iaagbasketball. The survey will close early July.

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