Dying College Basketball Player Gets Start, Scores In First Game

After Lauren Hill chose to attend Mount St. Joseph University in Ohio, she was diagnosed with brain cancer. Given the circumstances, the school was able to persuade the NCAA into moving their first game, against Hiram College, up to today. And Hill was one of the starting five.

Mount St. Joseph won the tipoff, and Hill scored a layup, which was fitting, given the hashtag on Twitter that chronicled her journey. The packed house went wild.

The 19-year-old maintained a positive attitude before the game:

Hill wasn't guaranteed to be fine for today's events, either. As the espnW article on her notes:

The tumor causes migraines and has weakened the right side of her body. The medicine makes her nauseous; it makes her joints ache and her face and body swell and does little to dampen the pain. She has good days and awful days and she tries to make the most of both.

Despite the pain, Hill was able to play in her first collegiate game, and score her first collegiate points.