The Oyster River Bobcats Unified Basketball team come down the court, the final 10 seconds tick down on the clock. The team has one final possession to score, the ball is passed to Mariana McCormick, but as it soars through the air it becomes clear that the pass is not on target. The ball reaches the sideline, flying out of bounds, but as the team’s spirits start to sink, McCormick makes a diving save, keeping the ball in bounds. She is able to get back up and dribble it towards the hoop, taking one final shot. The shot doesn’t go in and the final buzzer sounds. The Unified team has lost the game. They lost by more than 10. McCormick’s amazing save in the final seconds was not necessary, but it is what the team celebrates leaving this game.
Even without a win this season, the Unified Basketball team walked away feeling like they had won them all. The team went 0-8 this season, but that didn’t stop them from having fun.
Going into the season, Head Coach Jake Baver talked to the team about what success looks like for them, “We don’t look at our wins and losses as the determinant of what success means. That makes it easier to seek out places where we are finding success.”
Despite the losses, the Unified Basketball team did a great job of creating a fun environment this year. “This year we focused more on team spirit. We love to be loud on the bench as a team and cheer on everyone,” said partner Courtney George (‘25).
What stood out most about this season to player Morgan Whaley was getting the opportunity to have fun with her friends, “I got to play basketball with all of my friends. Everyone is really nice and positive.”
Baver has had seasons where he won every game, but that doesn’t make a losing season any less special. “The feeling of losing every single game this year does not detract from the actual success of turning a group into a team,” he said.
The uplifting spirit that Unified Basketball embodies is what actually measures their success. “We cheered for each other, we had lows that we handled together as a group, and we had highs that we celebrated together,” said Baver.
Another way the team measures their success is when the skills they do in practice pay off in games. “We don’t care about the score as much as we care about trying to do the best we can with how much time we have in a game,” said Baver.
McCormick’s save in a game that the team wasn’t going to win, was an excellent example of this. The effort that she put into that save wasn’t necessary, but it is what the team celebrated. It was proof that she put in her best effort in the time that she was on the court.
The Unified Basketball team has created what they believe is a strong culture. Unified Volleyball starts up March 31st and even though the Unified Basketball team went “utterly defeated” this year, Baver is confident the Unified Volleyball team will go “utterly undefeated.”
-Olivia Andersen
Images courtesy of Gabi Selig
Mouth of the River 
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