The 'Noles made sure not to forget Ronalda Pierce, who died after a promising rookie season.
By BRIAN LANDMAN
Published November 17, 2004
TALLAHASSEE - You can't miss Ronalda Pierce.
She's featured on the first page of this season's Florida State women's basketball media guide. An action cutout picture and her nickname, "Nautica," is emblazoned on a T-shirt her parents and siblings wear. Her jersey number, 55, is on a chic sneaker Nike specially designed for the Seminoles.
Then there are the less tangible, but no less real, signs of her presence. "We're dedicating this season to her," sophomore guard Alicia Gladden said. "She was a good player, a good teammate, a good friend. We know that she wants to be here."
Pierce died June 8 from an aortic rupture brought on by a rare and undiagnosed genetic disorder, Marfan's Syndrome, according to the medical examiner's final report. She was 19.
"Ronalda will be here," assistant coach Angie Johnson said. "She's our sixth man. She's going to be cheering for us and pulling for us. It'll be hard, but it'll be neat. They want to play for her and do it for her because she would expect nothing less."
The it, of course, is win enough games, beginning with Friday's season opener against Xavier, to take the program to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2001.
That won't be easy without Pierce, who showed flashes of brilliance last season, and point guard Shante Williams, another member of Pierce's heralded recruiting class who earned a spot on the all-ACC rookie team. Williams is taking the season off for personal reasons.
But in one sense, the Seminoles already have won and won big.
"I'm just really proud of the way our team has been very committed to sticking together and committed to really fighting through the different feelings that we've had and the pain," coach Sue Semrau said. "There's been times when you really just kind of stop, and it makes you realize how important life is."
It's an invaluable life lesson learned the hardest of ways.
Pierce, a 6-foot-5 rising sophomore and former prep All-American, was enjoying an ordinary day, culminating with watching television in bed. But according to police reports, she began having difficulty breathing and couldn't be awakened by friends. Despite the efforts of paramedics who arrived at her apartment at about 2 a.m., Pierce died at 3:17 a.m.
"The blow was devastating," Semrau said. "To turn around and know what to do was a difficult thing. Learning a year prior from the death of Matt Schmauch, our academic adviser, we made sure that every coach connected with the players and forced ourselves to talk about it and to share the struggles and to be vulnerable."
"At first, I was in shock," said Gladden, Pierce's roommate. "So many feelings were going through me. I wasn't focused on basketball. I wasn't focused on school. Everything was going bad for me. But I've gotten more in touch with it, and I know that she's okay. I know she's looking down on us."
Still, there would be difficult moments ahead.
Like the first time Semrau drove by Tallahassee Memorial Hospital late at night, rekindling the memories of June 8. Or the time she went to scout a prep all-star camp, a camp where Pierce once shined, saw a banner with Pierce's name and had to leave.
Or the first time the players walked into the locker room and saw Pierce's stall empty. No one sits there still. Or even something as innocuous as hearing the national anthem before the regular-season opener will be difficult for Johnson.
"I'd always hold her hand during the national anthem," she said. "Hannah (Linquist) was always on my right. Ronalda was always on the other side. Now there's going to be a different kid there."
Then there are the shoes.
Senior guard Roneeka Hodges, a transfer from LSU who sat out last season, persuaded Semrau to ask Nike to design a sneaker for the Seminoles as a tribute to Pierce.
The ankle-high shoe, the style of which Hodges first saw during the Final Four, is garnet and black (or garnet and white) with a garnet swoosh, garnet laces, Seminoles spelled out in garnet and, on the heel, 55 in garnet.
"Ronalda was a shoe maniac just like me," Hodges said. "She would have loved them."
The Seminoles also asked Nike to make a pair for Pierce's younger sister and brother, Roshunda, 14, and De'Andre, 7. They had them at FSU's first preseason game as the Pierce family, decked out in their Ronalda T-shirts, cheered on the Seminoles from the stands.
"I don't know how many games we'll make, but I made sure to come to this one," said Linda Pierce, Ronalda's mother, fighting back her emotions. "We're here to represent her."
Seeing the Seminoles play brought a smile to her face.
Seeing her children clutching the shoes brought a broader smile.
"They mean a lot," she said, glancing back toward the court for a moment. They sure mean a lot."
