It’s so much more than a game

YOUNGSTOWN

Players and coaches in Tuesday night’s Chaney v. Heartland Christian men’s basketball game put aside their rivalry to allow a special student his chance to score.

Chaney 10th-grader Keion’Tae Ratliff got a chance to play toward the end of the game.

Casey Bogerd, Chaney’s athletic director, said Keion’Tae, who is paralyzed on one side of his body following a severe brain aneurysm when he was younger, has been involved throughout this season as a dedicated manager for Chaney’s men’s basketball teams.

When it was his time on the court, Keion’Tae “fired up a few shots from deep but couldn’t get them to fall.”

Henry Glenn, the coach of Heartland Christian’s team, called a time out. He and Marlon McGaughy, Chaney’s head coach, talked for a minute or two, mapping out their plan and then play resumed.

“Chaney had the ball on an inbound from the sideline where they dumped in down quickly to a wide open Keion’Tae,” Bogerd said. “Keion’Tae pump faked and made the layup. The place erupted with fans from both sides and players from both benches cheering for our No. 23. It was an amazing moment for an amazing Chaney student-athlete.”

Keion’Tae summed up his basket and the response it drew simply: “I need more playing time.”

“That’s why we love him,” Bogerd said.