One torn anterior cruciate ligament is enough to deter some people from ever playing basketball again.
Not Grace Hamill. Not even close.
The Kamiak point guard has battled back after not one, not two, but three ACL tears that have forced her to miss the majority of her high school career. The senior has rehabbed once again and is back on the court for the Knights, who are off to a 3-1 start this season.
“It’s kind of crazy to think, but I don’t really know anything else, I guess,” Hamill said. “It’s not too bad.”
Hamill’s first ACL tear, in her left knee, came while playing the summer before her freshman year and forced her to miss the season. She recovered and played as a sophomore, then tore her right ACL the summer before her junior year. That winter, soon after being cleared to resume physical activity, Hamill tore her right ACL again, officially ending her hopes of playing her junior season.
By the third ACL tear, Hamill knew exactly what was going on.
“I knew what it was …,” she said. “I was hoping it was just a tweak. But I could kind of tell. It was kind of like, ‘Oh, I worked so hard to get here. I wish it didn’t happen.’ But after I went through it, I just got more motivation to come back.”
Kamiak head coach Brian Norman praises Hamill for the way she persevered through the pain and frustration.
“If all the girls were like Grace — with regards to the hard work, the effort, the dedication and leadership — this world would be a better place,” Norman said. “She’s been through a lot her freshman and junior years. But she’s always been a leader off the court, constantly encouraging and making other girls better by her presence. It’s just been a great experience having her around despite the circumstances.”
Norman, in his second year as the varsity coach, was leading the junior varsity when Hamill suffered her first knee injury. When the next ACL tear occurred two years later, he couldn’t believe it.
“Every ACL is like, ‘Oh no.’ And when it comes to the second — and the third — it’s like, ‘Oh no! Oh no!’” Norman said. “It’s pretty devastating for, not only her, but her teammates, her sister took it really hard because her whole family’s been through a lot of knee trauma. It’s pretty devastating. It’s really sad.”
Knee injuries tend to run in Hamill’s family. She said her father’s side of the family is almost known for ACL tears.
“My dad’s had four ACL surgeries, my sister’s had two, my brother’s had a knee (injury) — he didn’t play basketball but he threw the javelin and had some other knee issue — and then I’ve had three,” Hamill said. “So, our whole family has had joint issues.”
At one point, Hamill said, she considered giving up basketball.
“I thought about not playing for school, but I just like it so much,” she said. “I love the program and I love the coaches and the girls and I couldn’t just give up on all those people.”
Norman said Hamill is an integral part of this year’s team.
“She plays point guard and she’s just active,” Norman said. “She’s smart. Obviously, she’s dedicated and works hard all the time. It doesn’t matter what drill we’re doing. She’s the hardest worker we have and that’s how she leads. She’s really one of the quickest girls on the court. … She’s just very important to the team.”
Hamill has scored 32 points this season, including 14 in Kamiak’s 51-49 nail-biting victory over Monroe in its Wesco 4A opener Friday. However, it’s not just on the basketball court where she shines.
“Off the court she’s a great person,” Norman said. “She’ll go out of her way to make others feel welcome, from the C team to JV kids to kids that she doesn’t know at school. That’s the best part about Grace. We missed her, but she wasn’t really gone that far. She was hanging around and still encouraging.”
Now, when she’s leading the Knights down the court or putting a shot up, Hamill isn’t concerned about her knee.
“I trust my rehab and how I worked back,” she said. “But, I guess I play differently because once you’ve had an injury, you are more aware of things. You don’t want to put yourself in a situation where you could get hurt again.
“I play just as hard, I just do it more controlled.”
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