My Passion For North Carolina Basketball

I walked off the floor with sweat dripping from my hair. So many thoughts flew through my head that I couldn’t focus on anything. My junior year of basketball felt like it ended as quickly as a blink. It was as if in seconds we went from the stars of the state tournament to the embarrassments of it. I tried to forget the disappointment of it but it still will not leave. My desire and love to win games comes from the more apparent hatred of losing them. Junior year we had a chance to win a state championship, but we lost that chance. That was when I realized that I had one chance left to win. Senior year our basketball success would only be as rewarding as we would make it. The pressure placed on ourselves was substantial, and we faced trials on the road to success. In the end, we stood alone, crowned as the champions, not letting our chance slip away.

We walked together to the field, the spikes on the bottom of my cleats clicking with each step on the parking lot pavement. A huge field with onlookers filling the bleachers on the far side came into view, lit up by the soft evening light. I spotted the girls on my team and my tired looking grey-haired coach. Me and my dad split up, me going to warm up with my team and my dad going to sit with the team parents. As I was passing with my teammates I watched the opposing team carefully. I observed how neat their drills were and how accurate their shots and passes were. They all looked so athletic and that really made me doubt myself. How was I supposed to prove to everyone that I was a good player if I had to play against a team this good? What if I mess up and the other team completely destroys my team? The loud buzzer that ended the warm ups sounded and both teams went to their side of the field. My coach called today’s starters out, and luckily he didn’t choose me. Relieved, I went to go sit on one of the hard metal chairs they provided for the teams on the sidelines. The chairs were uncomfortable but that didn’t bother me. I had other things on my mind. I sat shivering watching the events of the game

On February 28, 2005, I experienced one of the most exciting events that anyone could ever experience – winning a State Championship. The day my soccer team made history is a day I’ll never forget. However it is not just that day we won the title, but the whole experience of the preceding season that got us there. From start to finish, my team’s 2004-2005 season taught me that the platitude is true. You can do anything you set your mind to.

Becoming a cheerleader at such a young age, being on the cheer mat became a happy place for me. I spent thirteen out of my eighteen years of my life cheerleading and it is definitely something that means a lot to me. Being on the cheer mat whether at practice or at competition has taught me many life lessons that I will cherish for the rest of my life. Having such caring and dedicated coaches made my experience so special and unique. My passion for cheerleading shows tremendously as soon as I step on the mat, and learning many life lessons from cheer has shaped me into the person I am today.

My freshman year we entered playoffs with a hopeful optimism that in our first year in 3A, the largest division, we could make a statement that we were here to stay. In the end, the game didn’t go our way. There were some questionable calls made but in the end, it is what it is: we weren’t good enough to win. A tough reality but often times you learn more from a loss than from a win. Sophomore

But the pride had 110% confidence in their selves. This may have been one of the hardest/encouraging game yet, we knew we could not lose to them. In the middle of the 4th quarter our starting quarterback had gotten injured, everyone took off their helmets and got on one knee. There was no more sound of laughter, chanting, singing. It was all serious, a teammate to us is not just a teammate, he is family. The sports med crew had ran out there and helped him, we could tell he was in a lot of pain but we knew he would be just fine. Everyone prayed and hoped he would be fine. 10 minutes later the trainers carried him off the field we didn’t know what was wrong with him yet, but we still had to continue the game. There was 5 minutes left in the quarter and the score was 35-42 with the pride still in the lead. The time went fast, with the 4th quarter coming to a end. The pride had did it, they had one by a shocking touchdown. At the end of the game we all went to our injured quarter back. We all went on one knee and smiled at each other, we now knew we had a special bond, not only in football but in our

Walking out onto the opponent’s brightly lit turf field setting up for the kickoff of the second half just gave me the feeling that everybody knows, my hair starts to stand up, butterflies began to flutter in my stomach, and everything seems to slow down. Looking into the stands and seeing that our hometown fans had traveled four hours in order to outdo the home crowd gave me a sense of comfort. Looking into East Jefferson’s stands and seeing that our fans, despite having to travel all the way down south, outnumbered their fans by at least 70 people. I found myself thinking that this meant just as much to our town as it did to our school and team. This feeling would be just the motivation we needed in order to finish this game

All they had to do was beat this team and then move on to beat Duke, a hard game but I believed they could do it. The game against Wisconsin in Indianapolis was a lot tighter than people believed, but I was never worried. Kentucky just finished off an 8-0 run and they held Wisconsin's defense at a standstill, Kentucky was going to go 39-0. Wisconsin had other plans though, they went on a 8-0 run themselves, and then tied the game with 3-pointer that was considered, by many, a shot clock violation. My heart stopped. Wisconsin had tied with Kentucky and they had the momentum built up as well. They went on an offensive rebound streak of 11 to have a total of 13 second chance points which was enough to beat Kentucky 71-64. Possibly the biggest upset of NCAA men’s basketball of the century had just happened, and I was on the losing side of it. Beside this moment in time, I was pretty chill went it came to competitions I was competing in, but something was different about this one. Kentucky should've won, and then they should've beat Duke to become the best college basketball team in history. This is not what happened however, they lost to Wisconsin, who lost to Duke. For the for the time in my life I felt dramatic disappointment in someone or something other than myself. That was a time a faced disappointment in memorable game, and how I still haven't dealt with yet. However, Rick Pitino, the coach for Kentucky before John Calipari, once said, “Failure is good. It is fertilizer. Everything I've learned about coaching, I've learned from making mistakes.” Everyone needs to fail every once in awhile, if we don't we never learn, if we don't we aren't

I watched the ball roll into the back of the net; it was 12-12 in overtime against Cardinal Gibbons. This was my last game with my brothers, best friends, and a family I will cherish for the rest of my life. I not only let my teammates down, I let my family down. We lost against Cardinal Gibbons in the 2015 3A State Championship game 13-12 in overtime. When they scored their final goal I immediately dropped to my knees and began to sob, I was not upset that I lost, I was upset that I let my family down and that was the last time I would ever step on the field with

In 2016, more than ever, the team was committed to and had one goal of winning. One of our biggest rivals was St. John’s College High School (SJCHS). My doubles partner and I played the last match of the WCAC championships against SJCHS. During the season, SJCHS was one of the hardest competitors we faced but walking onto the court on the final day of championships, my partner and I knew we would fight and win. After 45 minutes, I hit an ace and we won the match that put us in the lead to win the championships. October 30, 2016 was the single most exciting and overwhelming day for the team all season. Everyone’s hard work paid off.

In the regular season my dad’s team lost a game to Cedar Rapids. They lost 13-7 and the game wasn’t as close as the score was. Everyone knew the Cedar Rapids team was better than them and they knew the only way they would beat them in the playoffs would be to play harder than they did. After losing the game the coaches came up with a new style of playing and the players bought in, thinking it would be the difference that led them to a state championship. They went on to play Cedar Rapids in the state semi-finals. In a very hard fought game they beat Cedar Rapids 14-13 and went on to play in the state championship game. After they won that game, the entire town was behind them as they went to try and win the first state championship in school history. Also, in the state championship they played a really good team and they were projected to get destroyed by. But my dad’s team was able to pull off the upset and win the state championship 24-11. My dad was happy to win the championship, but he was happier for some of his teammates and coaches because he knew that winning that game would be the best moment in some of their

Since I was a child, I’ve been an NC State fan. Going to the women’s basketball games, men’s basketball games, and football most Saturdays was a family affair. Sometimes, I even think my first words were “Go pack!”. I had a little cheerleader outfit, sat sideline at the basketballs games and thought my calling was to be an NC State cheerleader at 5 years old. In middle school, I went to NC State basketball and volleyball camps. This love of NC State was one that united my whole family and brought us together during our busy schedules.

I remember the day clear as yesterday. (And no, I did not consume any alcohol yesterday, cognitive function firing on all cylinders.) The sky matched our jerseys perfectly. I mean we all know God is a Tar Heel fan right? Like the diamonds on our sides, a dream soon to be realized sparkled in our eyes. It was warm, birds chirping, by all accounts a perfect spring day. A day to spring into history. The air seemed to hang a bit lower so we could walk upon it. 2016 was the year. The year I was to graduate, the year that would be memorialized in the form of a banner to hang in the Dean Dome until the Earth refuses to spin.

Running into the gym with my team, knowing it was my last middle school basketball game, but first championship game I felt elated and truly blessed. My knees quivered with anticipation after seeing all the bleachers filled with people. After realizing even the press and other media was in attendance I grasped the moment like a newly elected president at his inauguration. I am warming up doing basketball drills, when I began to look at the flags on the gym wall depicting the history of the basketball team. The years and dates of the last championship game, Historically a championship game had not been won since 2007 . The more I stared at the flags, the more it made me want to win this game and make history in this gym. As the crowd and cheerleaders start to chant, cheer and get loud, I started to feel more comfortable and rowdy more than I had ever felt in any other game that I’ve played. Waiting for the referee to blow the whistle for jumpall to start. I felt my fingertips tapping the side of my leg, which for some reason gives me a sign to myself that I am pumped up and ready to play!

“Basketball is my favorite sport, I like the way they dribble up and down the court” – Kurtis Blow. My love for basketball started when I was very young, fifth grade to be exact. Growing up I always wanted to try out for my school’s basketball team. When I was young I use to always hear stories about my mom playing basketball throughout junior high and high school. Some of which made me want to play and do something that she loved to do. I eventually started loving the sport as much or even more than she did. This story goes way back to the fifth grade when I first tried out for the basketball team at my elementary school.