By MICHEAL COMPTON / micheal.compton@bgdailynews.com

It’s been a long, winding road to Bowling Green for Western Kentucky graduate senior guard Destiny Salary, but the journey has been worth it.

Salary said she never had any doubts about whether she would return for one more season, eager to come back to the place that has become home in just one season. After previous stops at Tennessee and Auburn, Salary is happy to know that when the ball tips at Indiana State on Monday she will be in uniform – something that wasn’t a guarantee early last season.

“I still think I have weight on my shoulders because this is my last year,” Salary said. “I expect so much for myself. It feels great not having to worry about having to send paperwork back and forth every other week, trying to figure out if I am going to be able to play this game or that game. I’m grateful I did end up getting to play, but this year I am trying to keep the main goal, the main goal – bond with my team and be the best we can be.”

Salary’s most productive season of her career, 12.7 points and 3.9 rebounds, began with uncertainty as Salary waited to be ruled eligible after transferring from Auburn. She missed the first 11 games before finally getting cleared, making an impact with 20 points in her debut against Abilene Christian.

She scored a career-high 25 points on two occasions, against UTEP and West Virginia State. There low points as well, with Salary nine points or less in six straight games in late February.

“She was like a freshman,” WKU coach Greg Collins said. “She didn’t play a lot at Tennessee. She didn’t play a lot at Ole Miss. She got here and we weren’t sure about the NCAA ruling on her eligibility – nothing to do with her, just the second transfer. And then she got the clearance to play.

“Really this has been the first time that she has gone into an offseason knowing that she was going to play the next season and she can prepare. She prepared this spring and summer like I’ve never seen her and I’ve known Destiny since she was a junior at Jonesboro.”

Salary said returning was made easier because of her relationship with Collins, who made her feel like family. She points to an incident on her birthday when she had two flat tires that really emphasizes how much Collins cares for her. Salary said she called her mom first, but Collins was the next person she called.

“He got everything taken care of quick,” Salary said. “Hotel, figured out where I was staying and how I was getting there. He’s just such a great guy. I have been to three different schools and I have had experience with three different coaches. I think there is no one like him. He allows you to make mistakes and grow through those mistakes.”

Salary was motivated in the offseason to grow even more, determined to follow the lead of teammates she learned from last year. Like the rest of her teammates, Salary is eager to help the Lady Toppers bounce back from a 15-17 year that ended with seven straight losses. She said she believes this year will be different, with her teammates there to motivate her to make her final season of college basketball a memorable one.

“I feel like you have people like (Acacia Hayes) and (Alexis Mead) who work really hard,” Salary said. “You have newcomers who work really hard. That just makes me want to work hard. Josie Gilvin is a really hard worker. Playing with Josie makes you want to work 10 times because you are watching her work so hard.”