(Toledo News Now) -
Northview
hockey will play in Columbus Friday, March 8 in the State Semi-Final. If they
win, they will be playing in the Championship game on Saturday.
But
things looked bleak for the team at the district final against St. John's. They
were trailing 2-1 with less than four minutes to go, when they found
inspiration from one of their own.
"We
were sitting on the bench right before that shift…and Z told me to flip my band
inside out, and it says "Believe" on the inside," explained Drew Crandall, a
Northview senior.
The
band he was talking about was a wristband given to team members by Jeremy
Bigelow, a former Northview hockey player who was paralyzed from the neck down
in a car accident in 2010.
"The
story behind that is – belief comes from within," Crandall said. "So we looked
at it right before that shift, went out there, Z put two huge ones home and you
know how the rest of the story goes."
The
band serves as a reminder to the team. On it, the number 212, and the words, "the
extra degree." It refers to 212 degrees – the temperature required to turn a
liquid into a gas.
"Just
with that little extra effort, that extra push, it can make a world of
difference," said Bigelow. "I think they really stuck with that, especially
this last game…I think that pulled them through."
Jeremy's
love of hockey brought him back to the rink. After the district final win, he
was in the locker room to deliver another powerful message to the team.
"We're
able to listen to him and connect that every day…that hockey knowledge, to a
deeper purpose," said Senior Zander Pryor.
"They're
interested and intrigued by his story and what he's doing to overcome his
adversity, and they're excited," said Northview's Head Coach Mike Jones. "He's
a part of our staff. He's a part of this hockey family, and that will always be
the case, and they accept him just as that."
Bigelow
wasn't able to be with the team during their state championship run last year,
but this year, he's been an inspiration to help guide the way.
"It's
awesome how they accepted me, and it's that camaraderie of a hockey team,"
Bigelow said. "It's something that can't necessarily be described, so it's
awesome to get back into it and be around that atmosphere because…hopefully it
will motivate them, and they motivate me just as much."
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Jeremy Bigelow
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