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For inspiration, Purdue looks to senior Katie Douglas, who lost both parents to cancer.
By ANTONYA ENGLISH
© St. Petersburg Times, published April 1, 2001
ST. LOUIS -- One year ago, Purdue guard/forward Katie Douglas was so grief-stricken she wasn't sure if she had the strength to return to the game of basketball.
An All-American who was a starting sophomore on the Boilermakers' national championship team two years ago, Douglas was reeling from the death of her mother, Karen, who lost an eight-month battle to breast cancer in April 2000.
Two years earlier, Douglas, the youngest of four children, lost her father to pancreatic cancer. Suddenly, returning to Purdue for her senior season became secondary; surviving and maintaining her sanity was most important. Her mother had attended every home game, blowing her kisses between warmup shots. Returning to Purdue seemed too much to ask.
But Karen Douglas did just that.
Katie Douglas spent the painful last 10 days of her mother's life at her hospital bedside. One of Karen's last requests was that her daughter return to school to earn her degree. And play basketball.
Douglas has honored that request admirably.
Friday night, she led all scorers with 25 points in the NCAA national semifinal game against Southwest Missouri State. She is the Boilermakers' leading scorer with 15.2 points, and she also averages 4.5 rebounds.
When Notre Dame (33-2) and Purdue (31-6) meet tonight in the championship game, Douglas will be leading the effort.
"I don't know if I can say how close I was (to quitting), but I'm just glad to be back," Douglas said. "My teammates have supported me throughout the year and I'm just glad to be playing in the national championship game."
That's about as much as Douglas has said on the subject during this weekend's Final Four interviews. Too much talk, and the tears will start to flow.
Her coach and teammates, however, can't say enough about her perseverance.
"It has been an extremely difficult thing for her, and for our entire basketball family," Purdue coach Kristy Curry said. "We have all tried to be there for her and support her. If I had one word to describe Katie, she is just a soldier. She continues to persevere. Sometimes things may get rough on the court and may not be going our way, but we can all look at Katie and say if she can overcome what she's had to overcome, we can handle this 40 minutes of basketball."
Douglas' return has been key to the Boilermakers' success this season. Along with leading the team in scoring, her versatility and experience on a squad with five freshmen has been invaluable. When guard Erika Valek tore her ACL during the region semifinal against Texas Tech, Douglas moved from her forward position to guard, where she played off and on this season while the freshman Valek learned the game. As she has for four years, Douglas has been whatever Purdue needs.
"When the ball is in her hands, there are always things happening," Curry said. "Her numbers are down this year, compared to last year, because she has been allowed to play less minutes because we are deeper. But she has made our team better. She contributes. She rebounds. Her team concept is strong. Her defense is so much better than last year. She does so many things for us besides just scoring."
Despite her success, it hasn't been an easy season for Douglas. In fact, the past four years have been difficult for the 21-year-old from Indianapolis. Along with losing her parents, Douglas lost teammate Tiffany Young, who was killed by a drunk driver in 1999, and she has played for three coaches.
Douglas wears a diamond necklace she and her late father once gave her mother as a gift. She also wears Young's number and the initials of her parents on her wristband.
She credits her teammates for helping her survive the past year. They credit her for inspiring them.
"Katie is a great friend, on and off the court," senior Camille Cooper said. "We went through a lot of ups and downs and we have seen a lot of adversity, but we have stuck together."
"Any team that goes through adversity becomes stronger," guard Kelly Komara said. "Because of that, we go out and play with a passion for each other."