Meghan Kocovsky Millard West High School Sports Feature Life s Great (LG) June 3rd, 2013 Lauren was able to suit up in green, white, and black on February 19th against the Bryan Bears for the first time. I didn t see the harm in giving someone an opportunity to make a dream come true, Kip Colony, Lauren s basketball coach, says. Eight minutes. The seconds on the clock ticked down. Tick. Tick. Pressure. The Millard West girls basketball team continued to destroy the Bryan Bears in the first half. A sea of white and green uniforms scrambled out of the gym with a 35 point lead while the Bears walked off court with frustrated grimaces and fists clenched. The clock ticked down and the private halftime conferences came to a close. Both teams made their way back into the sweaty, stuffed gym. Big, anxious smiles were plastered across the Wildcats faces, but a look of anger and determination rained over Bryans expressions. Eeeeeeeernt. The halftime buzzer blasted through the air, and starters from both teams took their place on court, with Bryan earning the first possession.
Let s gooooo! Both coaches and players yelled to the Wildcat starters on court. However, like recharged Bears coming out of hibernation, Bryan fought, swishing in a few more points. West kept up a strong defense while hitting more buckets, never letting the point gap fall to less than 25. On the sidelines, subs sat with basketball shoes anxiously tapping on the wood floor, waiting for any chance to go in for a longer chunk of time than usual. One of the subs, Lauren Grieb, was wearing the white and green jersey for the first time. Lauren has been team manager for the girls basketball team at Millard West for two years now. She attends practices after school and runs the clock. With warm, nervous hands clasped tightly together, feet slightly tapping on the ground, and her brown hair pulled into a ponytail, Lauren was pulled aside by coach Pam Dubas. Lauren s eyes, trained on the dingy whiteboard, watched carefully as Dubas squeaked the dry erase marker along the surface, drew up specific plays, all so Lauren could have the chance to score. Get ready, Kip Colony said in the third quarter. Colony is the head coach and pushed hard so Lauren could play this night. Pulling Lauren over, he gave her some last minute advice. I simply told her to have fun and go make a memory, Colony recalls. Lauren rose confidently from her padded chair, reassured by the smiles and high-fives from all of her coaches. As she made her way to the substitution check-in table, the gym erupted in whoops and hollers. Oh my God he s putting her in, a friend of Lauren s mother shouted. Lauren s parents watched from the second row of bleachers. Nervous. Excited. Happy. Her mother, Frances, watched as Lauren s teammates helped her out and kept an eye on her. This alone is enough to make her happy, Frances thought. Most of the Grieb family attended the game, one of the family members even canceling plans to go out of town, just to see Lauren play. As Lauren finally took her place on court for the first time during the game, her mom choked up. I had butterflies in my stomach, Frances recalls. Unlike the other players on the team, Lauren would be playing with a disability. She is a senior in the Alternative Curriculum Program (ACP) at Millard West. She has learning disabilities affecting the way she processes information, so it makes learning in the traditional way very hard and requires additional support. ACP instructor Joshua Weber describes Lauren as a quiet girl with a great personality. She is truly the type of student that every teacher dreams of having, Weber says. Despite the struggles, Lauren s dream was to play varsity basketball for the Wildcats someday.
One year ago, Colony read a local story on a cheerleader who had disabilities. The school allowed the cheerleader to try-out for the high school cheer team, but gave her no chance to make it or even participate with the team. This angered Colony who didn t understand why this student could not cheer in her wheelchair at games. He decided Lauren should have her moment to shine. I didn t see the harm in giving someone an opportunity to make a dream come true, Colony says, and at the same time, providing our team with a great life lesson of compassion, humanity, and self-sacrifice. Colony went through a great deal of effort over an extended period of time to get Lauren ready for this one moment. At the beginning of the year, he needed to make sure she was listed on the NSAA eligibility list and that Lauren had a school physical. After receiving permission from her parents, the team presented her with a varsity uniform the week of the game in what Colony recalls as an emotional presentation after practice one evening. After that, it was all about getting her ready by having his assistant coach Rick Mintken rebound for Lauren at practices. The first play of the game, the Wildcats had the offensive possession. The ball swung through the air, the team trying their hardest to find the best opportunity to dish it to Lauren. Finally, a pass opened up. The ball sailed right into Lauren s hands, and without a bobble or hesitation, she had the possession. Lauren s teammates screened, hoping she would have the chance for an open shot. After a seventh foul by Bryan, Lauren had a shot at a free throw. The Bear s defender couldn t reach Lauren on the outside, so she was wide open. The crowd could see her eyes, focused on the back of the rim, imagining the ball sinking through the white net. She quickly set her feet, and in one smooth, effortless motion, shot the ball.
Lauren s first shot in a varsity game. Ever. The ball seemed to suspend in the air, and everybody, even the Bears, turned their heads and locked eyes and watched. Waited. The power behind the shot was just a tad much, and the ball made contact with the back of the rim, and bounced high and far away from the hoop. Oooooh so close! Many fans in the gym blurted out in symphony. This same situation repeated itself once, twice, three times. Lauren maneuvered through the Bryan defense, a teammate found her open and passed, but each time the rim spit the ball out. The players kept setting up screens for Lauren to get open. Colony couldn t believe how remarkable and selfless his team was, allowing her an opportunity to shine. Everybody continued to encourage Lauren and kept her going, the student section yelled, the parent section cheered and clapped, and the team held hands on the sidelines. The cheerleaders, who lined the baseline AND half of the sideline, chanted a new and never-before heard cheer, Let s goooooooooo Lauren! Near the end of the third quarter, a frustrated Bear lunged on Lauren in an attempt to steal the ball, but missed and hit her. Tweeeeeeeeeeeeeet. The ref s whistle sounded Bryan s seventh foul. One and one. Lauren on the free throw line. Silence in the gym. She took her place on the line. The players, alternated every other along the lane, lined up and waited. Those two points would not change the game much, considering the now huge score gap, but those free-throws felt huge and important. I wanted her to score so badly, Colony says. Lauren set her feet to align with the hoop and began her muscle memory. She bounced the ball, spinning it in her sweaty hands, and focused her eyes on the rim. Shoot. Sail. Swish. Mass chaos.
The screams were deafening. The cheers uplifting. The smiles real as they get. The entire bench went insane. All the coaches began to tear up, and the players all jumped up and down, hands still locked together. It was beautiful moment, not just for Lauren, but everyone who attended the game, Colony says. Colony told Lauren he was proud of her, calling a timeout after making her second shot. There weren t many dry eyes on the bench, he says. Probably the most grateful for his actions is, of course Lauren, but also her parents. We can t thank Colony enough for all he has done for Lauren. He is simply amazing, Frances says. There were a lot of paperwork and necessary approvals needed for Lauren to participate in a varsity game. When the gym finally settled down, the ref passed the ball to Lauren to shoot her second free throw. An exact repeat of the first free-throw occurred, and Colony called a timeout to herd Lauren into a bombardment of congratulations and hugs from her teammates and coaches. As Lauren ran off the court, her head was held high, confident in her abilities. Colony hugged Lauren in a bear hug, telling her how proud he was. Colony says there weren t many dry eyes on the bench including his own. After Colony let Lauren go, she made her round of hugs to all of the coaches while receiving high-fives from her supportive teammates. She finished out the third quarter. Even though she did not score again, she continued to get open, made great passes, disrupted the other team on their offensive end, and hustled up and down the court. The fourth quarter rolled in quickly and Lauren remained on court, assisted by a new lineup of substitute players instead of starters.
It didn t seem to matter West had won 70-17, it was Lauren s moment. It felt like my child had just won the gold medal in the Olympics, or the national championship, or the Super Bowl, and everybody was celebrating, Frances recalls. Even though Frances was on the verge of tears, she felt a rush of pure, unbelievable joy. Lauren s family and teammates supported her before and after the game. Lauren felt it was one of the best nights of her life. All the girls and coaches were congratulating me in the locker room, Lauren says. She was also given many gifts from her teammates and family such as a bouquet of balloons and posters. Post-game was almost as great as the game itself, with so many friendly faces giving kind words to Lauren. I felt like a superstar! It was one of the best nights of my life, Lauren says, beaming with excitement. Weber agrees, It was certainly a highlight of the year for everyone involved in the Alternate Curriculum Program. Not only did all of this attention follow Lauren for the rest of the night, but the next few days as well. She was being congratulated in church, and on Monday in QT, Nick Hargis, who is one of the boys varsity basketball players, told everyone in class Lauren had played in the girls varsity game and made two free throws. I thought that was really nice of him, Lauren says. Lauren explains how this one night made her senior year special and she will never forget this night. My initials are LG for Lauren Grieb, and my nickname is Life s Good. On Saturday night, I felt like Life s Great.