Hailey Garrity leaves everything on the court because she knows adversity

MOSES LAKE — Hailey Garrity called it the best three days of the year.

No, it’s not a long weekend.

It’s when hundreds of basketball enthusiasts arrive in Beaverton, Ore. for Hoop Camp. Hoop Camp, a non-profit organization, was started by Hailey’s father Steve Garrity in 1994. Now in its 25th year, the camp caters to children and adults with special needs, as well as all children under 12 years old.

Volunteering with her family at the camp has not only informed Hailey Garrity’s view on basketball, but on everyday life.

“Why am I born the way I am and they’re born the way they are? We could very easily be in their shoes and they have a very hard life and I think it’s the least we can do,” she said. “That’s what my dad says. He doesn’t even see it as a service or a favor. They’re our friends and we’re just sharing the love of the game of basketball to them.”

A second Hoop Camp was started last year in Pocatello, Idaho by big brother Hayes Garrity.

“During the games you’ll see someone from the other team give it (the ball) to someone who maybe can’t run up and down the court with them and can’t really even see the basket and struggles to shoot,” Hailey Garrity said. “You will see people from the other team get the rebound for them and give it back to them.

“That’s the most amazing thing about it, is within the heat of the game, with tensions high and people wanting to win and play basketball and stuff, they are the most kind people and they don’t care what it is. They want everyone to experience the happiness that they experience from basketball. That, to me, is what’s so amazing about Hoop Camp.”

Basketball is the through line.

Steve Garrity played collegiately at Idaho State University and the University of Alaska Anchorage before a stint of professional basketball in Europe. Hayes Garrity played one season at Big Bend, two more at Utah Valley University and finished his career where his father started — Idaho State.

“I really aspire to be like my dad and my brother,” Hailey Garrity said. “I look up to them a lot.”

Hailey Garrity’s basketball career appeared to be in jeopardy halfway through high school. She tore her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) her junior year at Westview in Portland, Ore., wiping out her last two high school seasons. So, her recruitment process became unconventional.

“Recruiting Hailey was interesting because she didn’t have any film, really, from her junior and senior year and we were mostly going off her stats from her sophomore year ... The dad, actually, is the one that reached out to me the first time and said, ‘Hey, I think I’ve got a daughter that wants to come up here and play for you,’ and then when he told me she hadn’t been playing for the last 18 months I thought oh, great, thanks a lot,” Big Bend head coach Preston Wilks said with a laugh.

Hailey Garrity proved to be an integral piece as a freshman, averaging 11.31 points and eight rebounds per game. Big Bend finished eighth in the NWAC East, but five returning sophomores kept things upbeat within the program.

However, a third knee surgery cast doubt into whether playing her sophomore season was feasible.

Most would have hung up their sneakers. But the more time spent around Hailey Garrity, the more she separates herself from most people. She could only shoot during the offseason and didn’t begin to jog until she returned to Big Bend.

And? So? No excuses.

“You only get to play basketball once in your life, really,” Hailey Garrity said. “After the four years of college, it’s over. There’s pick-up games, but it’s not the same. I love being really competitive and I love getting after it. School is great and all, but basketball is even better. I didn’t want it to be the end.”

This season almost ended prematurely.

After a loss at home to Yakima Valley on Jan. 24, Big Bend sat at 3-5 in the East Region and in eighth place.

It would take at least a 5-3 mark during the second half of regional play to force a play-in game, 6-2 to ensure a big to the NWAC Tournament.

No matter what had happened in the past, this year would be different, thought the Vikings.

That mentality change began when freshman Leah Dougherty was inserted into the starting lineup. Wilks was excited about what Dougherty would bring to the team in the preseason, but eased her along and eventually brought her out with the starters Jan. 6 at Blue Mountain. Dougherty, at the point of Big Bend’s pressure defense, nabbed eight steals to go with 12 points.

Hailey Garrity congratulated Dougherty with her trademark charm.

“I think I remember after the first time I started, she came up to me and she’s like,’ Dude, good job,’” Dougherty said. “She’s like, ‘Most people might choke under that situation, but you didn’t. You did well.’ I just took the opportunity and I’ve gone with it ever since. I’m not really very hesitant at all and I’ve tried to also be a leader out on the court even though I’m a freshman.”

Big Bend turned it all the way around, finishing the second half of regional play 6-2, stunning No. 1 seed Grays Harbor in the first round of the NWAC Tournament before turning around and beating host Everett in the Elite Eight the next night.

There’s at least one game left — Saturday night’s semifinals against No. 1 seed Walla Walla.

Hailey Garrity knows she’s fortunate to make it this far because she’s seen adversity through her volunteer work and her own injuries.

So, in the grand scheme of things, it’s OK to be the underdog.

“When I had my surgeries it really, really hit me and it humbled me that there’s people that could be in a lot worse situations and, to me, I have two years left and that’s why I want to play so bad because I’m so blessed with a healthy mind and a healthy body,” Hailey Garrity said. “Despite my surgeries, they could be a lot worse and I’m just incredibly grateful that I’m able to play this game, that I’ve been able to come to this school, that I’m able to have seriously such amazing teammates and an amazing coach and I’m even able to get to the Final Four, which is a huge accomplishment.

“How many schools didn’t make it? It’s just amazing and I’m so incredibly blessed to do that. I think that’s why this year has been amazing to me. I’m just so blessed with all the people, my peers, even my teachers, that I’m able to get an education here. I’m just beyond blessed and grateful.”