A Little History. Why I'm Blogging on UNC Women's Basketball

I'm Sonya.  I'm a Christian, a mom, a widow, a Data Analyst and other things.  The focus of this blog is that even during these turbulent times, among those things...yes, I'm a Tar Heel.  My children and I especially love UNC Women's Basketball. 

It's the start of a new season for the University of North Carolina's Women's Basketball team and this year I wanted to do something new.  First a little history.

I spent four season supporting the team as a student and Pep Band member.  Those were some of my best memories from college.  I was privileged to see a lot of great games in a variety of sports.  I kept a journal during my final year in the Pep Band.  It ended with the shot heard around the world.  Yes, I was in the coliseum for this one. (image is owned by Sports Illustrated.)

 

After my time at UNC, I kept attending games.  I had season tickets to games in Carmichael, traveled to away games during the regular season and joined the fans who traveled with the team during the post season.  I got married in 2000 and had my first child in 2003.  For a while I mostly watched the games on television.  But that would not last long.  When my first child was nearly three years-old, I brought her to Carmichael for the first time. She was excited to see the team in person.  She wanted to see someone in particular, a tiny fireball she affectionately called "Ivwee".  (Image courtesy of ESPN)

 

 

Like a lot of little girls, and big ones, my daughter loved watching Ivory Latta play basketball.  She , who I'll call AC in this blog, without much prompting became very comfortable in the game atmosphere and followed every cheer and watched most every play.  Too young at the time to know we didn't win the game (it was a loss to Maryland in Overtime), she didn't want to leave when it was over.  That night in February 2006 marked the beginning of a new adventure, sharing my love for UNC with my child.  I also kept a handwritten journal during that time.  By the time she went to Kindergarten she had gone to over 30 home games, over a dozen road games, three ACC tournaments and a Final Four.

 

   

 

My husband loved UNC and supported our adventures though his health issues didn't allow him to join in on the fun.  I took off the 09-10 season because of what I like to call an unexpected blessing.  In January 2010, on a game day no less, we welcomed a new little Tar Heel into our family. 

 

 

 Unfortunately, two months later, after years of heart and lung issues, my husband unexpectedly passed away in his sleep.  My children and I were on our own.  But that is not what this blog is about.  Close to a year after, we were back in Carmichael.  I think I needed the positivity of UNC Women's Basketball in my life.  My son fit right in to our adventures...home games, road games, post season games.  He has enjoyed being along for the ride and developed a love for the Tar Heels all his own.

On to the present day, my daughter is 11 years-old and my son is 4 years-old.  We're ready for the 14-15 adventure with a very talented UNC Women's Basketball team.  All of the joy I've gotten looking back at my handwritten journal entries got me to thinking about how much my family enjoys the team.  I'm willing to bet there are other families who could experience it too, but don't for various reasons.  I ran into such a family at the 2014 game against Duke in Carmichael.  While my son and her daughter compared their noise cancelling ear muffs (a worthwhile accessory for any little sports fan with sensitive ears) she told me how she'd forgotten how much fun these games could be.  As we talked I told her how much my children enjoyed it and she mentioned possibly getting season tickets the following year. 

So here I am in my 25th year loving UNC Women's basketball, I decided to make this a live online journal.  This will document our experiences over the course of the season in hopes that other families will discover or in some cases rediscover a love for UNC Women's Basketball.