By VINCE LOVERGINE
TopSports.news
The Rossville Lady Bulldawgs' basketball season came to an end on Tuesday night against Ellinwood in the Class 2A state quarterfinals.
Rossville senior star Rylee Dick scored 31 points in her final high school game against Ellinwood on Tuesday. [File photo/TSN]
Before the season began, Rossville coach Derek Dick told TopSports.news that he and the team wanted to enjoy the little moments this year. They envisioned that goal of making it to the state tournament and before it all began, he said the first week of practice was the best he’d had in his 16 years of coaching.
While Derek and Rylee Dick only shared the court for two years in the Rossville uniform at the varsity level, it began way before that.
Rylee Dick knew she had a dream of playing college basketball some day at the next level and she will be doing that as she’s signed to play with Rockhurst University.
After the state quarterfinal game, Derek said it was something he’ll never forget with his daughter, cherishing those small moments.
“I made memories with my daughter that will last for a lifetime. We go to the gym every night to practice, I’m going to miss that,” Dick said after a tear rolled down his eye. “I was proud to share that moment with her and I know I was hard on her a lot, but I wanted her on the big stage. I thought she earned it through her work to be here.”
Derek Dick did say he was going to be a little lighter on Rylee this season, but they both know it’s out of love and wanting the best for Rylee.
“I know she’s my daughter, I’m super proud of Rylee,” Derek said, choking up. “When we were struggling to score or get things going, we put the ball in her hands and let her go and she made plays and gave us a chance, proud of her.”
When you look at the resume of Rylee, it’s quite remarkable. She became No. 2 all-time in Rossville scoring history back in January. She eclipsed the 1,500 point mark on March 3 and she nearly scored 50 points in a game, with 47 back in December against Kansas City-Ward.
Something people know about Rylee is her sharp shooting beyond the 3-point arc, creating for her teammates and making her teammates better.
But something that hasn’t bceen in Rylee’s favor is her height, with Dick listed at 5-foot-9. She recognized that from a young age and she needed to grind and put in countless hours even after practice.
“Ever since third or fourth grade, I always said I wanted to play college basketball and that’s definitely not an easy thing to do, especially being short,” Rylee said with a smile. “I know that I’m not that naturally gifted at basketball, so I had to put in a lot of time and effort and take it to where I am today and I knew that wouldn’t happen without being in the gym every night.
"I’m grateful for the grind. It’s taught me so much and I can use the skills and hardships I learned for everyday life… you’re not going to be anywhere without hard work. I’m glad that was instilled into me at a young age and so that I can accomplish other things, too.”
“I know there’s people all throughout the state that work hard but literally, she’s in the gym every night and with her height… she's a good athlete, not an elite athlete, but she has to do that stuff to give herself a chance. She understands that, she knows that, she’s earned everything she’s got,” Derek Dick said.
He said he saw this vision many years ago when Rylee was a little girl and knew this stage was possible with her.
"That’s why we did it,'' Derek Dick said. "We did it for this moment to play on the big stage in a Rossville uniform. Ever since she had the dream of college basketball in like third grade, the first step was let’s build the legacy at Rossville, let’s make it to the state tournament. That was always the goal growing up and this year, too.''
Rylee scored 31 points in her final game in a Rossville uniform. Rylee, visibly upset after the game, reflected on what it’s been like being with her dad on the sidelines and sharing those little moments.
“I’m so grateful for him. He has been to the gym with me every single night since I can’t even tell you how old I was,” Rylee said, choked up with tears coming down her cheeks. “I’ve put in the shots, but he’s put a lot of time, effort and work into me, too, so I definitely know I wouldn’t be where I am today without him. I can’t even put it into words, I’m really lucky to have a dad that is willing to help me accomplish my dreams and it was really awesome for him to coach me these last two years.
"He knows me better than anyone, especially my basketball skills, so I’m just so grateful for him to hold me accountable and play like I can.”
Before the season began, knowing they could have a shot at making the state tournament, Rylee and the girls believed they could make a run despite being a young group.
Now, as Rylee is set to graduate and move onto college next season, she said she hopes her teammates make it back next year as she’ll watch from the stands.
Rylee said back in November, ‘It would be weird not having him as my coach,’ and, ‘It's just kind of our thing together.' ”
And, it definitely was. After embracing each other once the game concluded on the court Tuesday night, one thing is for certain, they both accomplished a lot together as a duo.
