Macy McCormack, a senior on the Maize South basketball, remembers dribbling and playing basketball when she was just a four-year-old with her cousin.

Fast forward fourteen years later, and McCormack is now one of the key players for the Mavs, averaging ten points per game as a power forward varsity starter who can be described as no less than “hardworking.”

McCormack found quickly that she had a talent for it, and she experienced a unique “thrilling” feeling playing on the court. But she doesn’t just rely on her raw talent to be one of the best post players for the Lady Mavs.

“It’s not something that’s given to you,” McCormack said. “It’s something you have to earn. So like a lot of extra hours in the gym, or working really hard in practice and not just going through the motions.”

The Mavs girls basketball squad is on a roll with an 9-1 record as of January 27.  However, McCormack recently encountered a speed bump in her high school career when she landed on her arm during a routine scrimmage.

“At first I was definitely really sad about it,” McCormack said. “But I finally just accepted it, no matter what the outcome was, and I just knew I had to be there for my team because they still needed me even if I wasn’t on the court with them.”

However, the very next day, she was told there was no longer any sign of a break, and they determined her injury to be a minor sprain. She was expected to return in a week, but returned instead this past Friday in a 21-point victory over Campus High School.

In the short time she sat in recovery, she has adopted the role of a highly involved mentor and motivator to her teammates. She dedicated most of her effort to help younger players who filled in at power forward during her time off.

“I definitely have to be a big encourager, especially to the younger kids that are playing in my position,” McCormack said. “I have to be a big time teacher to them and help them out and stuff. Just encouraging all my teammates.”

While the individual contributes in basketball, the team makes the difference. The Maize South girls have no lack of talent and chemistry together not just as teammates, but friends off the court as well. 

“We definitely have a lot of energy together as a team which helps on the court and most of us have played with each other for a while now so we all kind of how everyone works as a team,” she said. “We also do team bonding stuff and we like to hangout together so we just know each other on and off the court. That definitely helps.” 

For McCormack, basketball not only is an extracurricular she excels at, it has coached her to adopt real life positive qualities. 

“I definitely think it has taught me a lot of things in life. It has taught me responsibility, like I have to be at practices and show up,” she said. “Probably to work hard obviously, because I want to be good and I want to do my best and I have to work hard for that, and to work with people.”

McCormack has signed to play college basketball next year for Sterling College. She plans to major in physical therapy and wants to focus her efforts on athletes.

Moving forward by finishing her high school career and college on the horizon, McCormack has a new outlook due to her brief injury for each time she steps onto the court. 

“Now I know that every game could be my last,” she said. “So I have to play my best and hardest every single game because you just never know what could happen.”