Weaver’s injury sidelines him for season, still an asset to Spartan basketball team

BY DANI TIETZ
dani@sjodaily.com

Getting injured is something that every athlete thinks about, but the majority go through their entire careers without suffering from one.

Unfortunately, for Brayden Weaver, the injury he suffered on Senior Night when St. Joseph-Ogden’s football team faced Olympia, will put him on the sidelines for the 2019-20 basketball season.

“From the loud pop I heard in my leg when I went down on Senior Night, I knew that my career on the hardwood was likely done,” Weaver said. “It has been a process, but I realize that everything happens for a reason.”

While Weaver hopes to at least be able to dress for the end of his senior year, he knows that the injury is not something that will dampen the impact he can have on his Spartan team.

“I will not allow my torn MCL to hinder my relationship with the team and the effect I can bring,” he said. “I want to go from a leader on the court to a leader off, and bring whatever it is my team may need at any given time. I am thankful that I will still be allowed to attend practices and sit on the bench during games, doing what I can to help the team.”

For as long as Weaver can remember, the closeness of this Spartan squad has been what has carried them through.

“This senior class has a brotherhood that I believe will last far beyond the years of high school,” he said. “The joy and moments that we have experienced together are things that cannot be understated or taken away.

“This also helps us in the court and on the field in other sports, as well. It is the bond and brotherhood that has been established that makes me proud to take the court with these guys every day.”

The work ethic behind the 10-member senior class is something that has led to success. The group went to the IESA State Finals in seventh- and eighth-grade, and were part of the 2016 Spartan squad that won the IHSA State Championship.

Weaver said it is the willingness of the Spartans to put team before self that makes them successful in life.

But, he said, it’s not tournament wins and state runs that define the success.

“Truly the part that I will think back on the most when it comes to basketball is the bus rides, taking the court together, and going through each practice with the joy and brotherhood that this group of guys has,” he said. “It is this relationship that is the highlight of this team.

“We can go as far as we want as long as we continue to play for each other each night. The sky is the limit for this group, and I am sad that I won’t be on the court, but I am glad to still be able to experience the ride that we will go on.”

It’s a ride that was better than Weaver could have imagined.

“Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve waited for the opportunity to wear a Spartans’ jersey on both the court and the field,” he said. “Coming up through high school, the experience was far and above what I could’ve ever imagined.

“I am so proud to have worn and to continue to wear Spartans across my chest.”