Lauren Hill (basketball)

Lauren Hill (October 1, 1995 – April 10, 2015) was an American freshman basketball player at Mount St. Joseph University in Cincinnati, who suffered from terminal brain cancer. She was runner up for 2014 Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year, coming second in voting to Mo'ne Davis.[1]

Lauren Hill
Personal information
Born(1995-10-01)October 1, 1995
Greendale, Indiana
DiedApril 10, 2015(2015-04-10) (aged 19)
Cincinnati, Ohio
NationalityAmerican
Listed height5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Career information
High schoolLawrenceburg (Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
CollegeMount St. Joseph (2014)
PositionForward
Career highlights and awards

Biography

Lauren Hill was born in Greendale, Indiana.[2] Her battle with cancer became public when the NCAA agreed to allow Mount St. Joseph to play Hiram College two weeks prior to the original game date so Hill could play.[3] The location of the game was also originally moved from Hiram's Price Gymnasium to Mount St. Joseph's Harrington Center so that Hill would not have to travel the over 300 miles from Cincinnati to Hiram. However, due to public interest in the game, it was later moved from the 2,000 seat Harrington Center to the 10,250 seat Cintas Center on the campus of Xavier University.[4] She raised US$1 million for pediatric cancer research with a Cincinnati telethon for The Cure Starts Now Foundation.[5] The Foundation then donated $1 million to brain cancer research[6][7] and continues to grow and donated over $4.7 million to medical research in 2015.[8]

Hill's family signed her up for hospice care on December 1, 2014.[9]

After Hill played in four games and made five layups,[10] Mount St. Joseph basketball coach Dan Benjamin announced that she would not play in future games but would like to stay on as an honorary coach.[11] On January 7, 2015, Hill served as an assistant coach for the team.[12]

Wheaties honored Hill with her picture on its cereal box.[13]

On February 6, 2015, Hill was given an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters degree by Mount St. Joseph University.[14]

On March 4, 2015, she was named to the all-conference first team in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference. "This award is being presented to Lauren in recognition of her courage and outstanding leadership", said conference commissioner Chris Ragsdale.[10]

On April 5, 2015, she was given the Pat Summitt Courage Award.[15]

Death

Hill died on April 10, 2015 at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.[16][17] A public visitation and memorial service was held on April 13, 2015 at the Cintas Center with a private funeral and burial on April 15, 2015.[18]

Legacy

In June 2015, Hill was honored with a brick in the courtyard of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame; the brick is inscribed with her name and the word "Hero".[19]

On July 15, 2015, Hill was honored with the "Best Moment" Award at the annual 2015 ESPY Awards. Her parents, Brent and Lisa Hill, accepted the award on her behalf.

On June 11, 2016, Lauren received the first "For the Love of the Game" award presented by the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. This award is presented for showing outstanding courage and inspiration. Her college coach at Mount St. Josephs, Dan Benjamin received the award during the WBHOF Induction Ceremony in Knoxville, TN.

See also

References
  1. "Lauren Hill runner-up for Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year". Archived from the original on January 1, 2015.
  2. "Lauren Hill". Hollywood Life. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  3. "An Unforgettable Sunday Afternoon For Lauren Hill". espnW. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  4. "Lauren Hill of Mount St. Joseph's, who has brain tumor, fulfills hoops dream". ESPN.com.
  5. "Cancer-stricken hero Lauren Hill raises $1 million". NY Daily News. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  6. "Lauren Hill Basketball: Terminally Ill College Basketball Player Reaches Her $1 Million Goal For Brain Cancer Research [VIDEO] : NCAABB". Sports World News. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  7. "Terminally Ill Basketball Player Lauren Hill Raises $1 Million – Cancer, Real People Stories". People.com. Associated Press. December 31, 2014. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  8. "2016 TCSN Annual Report" (PDF). Fall 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
  9. Keith BieryGolick, The Cincinnati Enquirer (December 3, 2014). "Lauren Hill's family signs her up for hospice care". Usatoday.com. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  10. "Lauren Hill recognized by conference". ESPN.com. March 4, 2015. Archived from the original on March 5, 2015.
  11. Greg Noble. "Lauren Hill: Basketball hero with brain cancer will become honorary coach for Mount St. Joseph". WCPO. Archived from the original on January 10, 2015. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  12. "Lauren Hill serves as assistant coach for MSJ basketball game – Local 12 WKRC-TV Cincinnati – Top Stories". Local12.com. Archived from the original on January 12, 2015. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  13. "Wheaties honors cancer-stricken basketball freshman Lauren Hill". NY Daily News. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  14. "Lauren Hill awarded honorary doctorate from Mount Saint Joseph University". Wcpo.com. February 7, 2015. Archived from the original on February 10, 2015. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  15. "Lauren Hill honored with Pat Summitt award". Mobile.philly.com. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  16. "Lauren Hill, Who Fought Tumor to Play College Basketball, Dies at 19". The New York Times. April 11, 2015. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
  17. Sinclair Broadcast Group. "Lauren Hill (1995-2015) – Top Stories – wkrc". Lauren Hill (1995-2015) – Top Stories – wkrc. Archived from the original on April 13, 2015.
  18. WCPO Staff. "Thousands participate in Lauren Hill memorial". WCPO. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
  19. "Lauren Hill Honored With A Brick And A Word In Indiana Basketball Hall Of Fame". espnW.
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