By: Starting on National Girls & Women in Sports Day on February 7 and throughout the rest of the month, we will recognize some of our past Doris B. Hopper Award winners.
JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – February 7 marks the 32nd anniversary of National Girls & Women in Sports Day. In honor of that achievement, we have contacted past Doris B. Hopper Award winners and asked them to recount some of their past experiences in athletics and how playing sports has changed their lives. These profiles will run every weekday through the end of the month.
Our first profile is Hannah McGinnis from the Class of 2015. McGinnis won the Hopper Award after a senior season on the hardwood in which she was named the Midwest Conference Player of the Year for a second year in a row and was one of 10 finalists for the Jostens Trophy, awarded to the top men's and women's Division III basketball players in the country.
Who was your female sports idol growing up?
I wouldn't say that I necessarily had one specific female sports idol growing up, but I always liked Diana Taurasi. I also paid close attention to the older girls on the teams I played on; I looked up to them and learned everything I could from them.
How did you get started in athletics?
Athletics were always a part of my life. I grew up watching my older brother play and couldn't wait until I was old enough to do more than just shoot around in our old shed.
How has athletics impacted your life?
Over the years basketball consistently challenged me mentally, physically, and emotional, and yet it also brought me some of my favorite memories. Without it, I would likely have never met some awesome people. Basketball also reinforced the strong work ethic my parents instilled in me as a child and taught me to positively interact with all people even when I may not get along with, or even like them. But, the biggest way basketball impacted my life was the bond it created between me and my dad. Growing up he was always excited to take me to shoot, or to work on a new post move, so now that he is gone I cherish those moments more than I ever knew I could.
Have you taken anything from athletics into your career field?
I have carried many things over from my basketball career into my job as an Occupational Therapist. As a part of a therapy team, I consistently use all aspects of "teamwork" that were necessary to allow successful collaboration on the court. Specifically as an OT, I am not only responsible for creating treatment plans that will progress my patients back to their prior level of functioning, but it is also my job to motivate, direct, and support them through this progression, even when things aren't easy or going well. This was something I got lots of practice doing when fulfilling leadership roles as an athlete.
What was your most memorable moment as a student-athlete?
My most memorable moment as a student-athlete was finding out we had made it to the conference tournament my senior year.
