North Sanpete unified basketball takes state
SALT LAKE CITY—Moments of wonder were heard and felt in the Delta Center on March 28, encapsulated in the words of those who stepped onto the basketball court that day.
Wearing the red jerseys that represented North Sanpete, players could be heard describing an experience that can hardly be replicated. “I played on the same floor that the Jazz play on,” one player said.
Another, through labored breathing, and perhaps just in awe of all that the team had accomplished that day, said, “We ran a full court?”
North Sanpete is the only school in Sanpete County involved in Unified Sports, a program facilitated by Special Olympics to combine student-athletes with intellectual disabilities with Unified partners, enabling athletes from the general student body to train and compete with their unique fellow classmates.
North Sanpete’s Unified Sports program began roughly 10 years ago, with a basketball program starting up within the last few years. That particular Friday, the Hawks came away from an unforgettable experience on the most hallowed court in the state when they won the Unified Basketball state championship in the Player Development Division.
“My students are just happy to play and run with their friends; winning is a bonus,” said head coach Cami Christensen, a special-education teacher at North Sanpete. “Winning, for my students, was such a great experience…This was so much fun for the athletes.”
North Sanpete Red was coached that day by assistant coach Halli Bennett. One of two squads representing the Hawks that day, the team won the title game against Grantsville. The Cowboys led, 6-2, at halftime, but the Hawks outscored them, 11-5, the rest of the way for a dramatic 13-12 victory.
North Sanpete White, coached by assistant Debbie Miller, also performed well on its game day, playing at Utah Valley University in a different division and coming up just short of a title itself.
“Watching [Bennett and Miller] work with these kids is nothing but incredible,” Christensen said. “I owe them both so much.”
Christensen, who was appointed to begin the Unified Sports program, has relished the positive effects the program has had on its participating athletes, whom she lovingly refers to as her “kiddos.”
“Unified Sports is such a great opportunity for my students to be ‘popular’ and part of the school,” Christensen said. “…This was an opportunity for my kiddos to do things that the other students get to do. The teamwork is so much fun to watch, the Unified Partners do such a great job making sure that the athletes feel success. It’s a win-win all the way around.”
Unified Partners on the state championship team included some of North Sanpete’s varsity players, including starting guard McKay Schlappi and senior guard McCoy Burnside. There was also freshman football player Kaige Rees and girls basketball junior forward Ellie Finlinson. The team is managed by Kyson Taylor, a junior on the football team.
As the team traveled home from Salt Lake City, they were met by the police and fire departments of Mt. Pleasant and Fairview, who escorted them from Indianola all the way to the high school in Mt. Pleasant.
Unified Sports is continuing to grow at the school since its inception as a track team 10 years ago. Following the success of the track program, the basketball program is now thriving, and Christensen reported that the school will begin a soccer program this spring.
“It was inspired by a simple principle,” Christensen said. “Training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding.”
Ultimately, what the experience meant for the athletes involved and the surrounding community may be best captured by one sentence Christensen heard a player say in the middle of the Delta Center.
“I got to play with my friends.”