Kent State of Mind: Bridget Dunn - Not Dunn Yet
1/4/2023 11:47:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Bridget Dunn as told to FanWord
Growing up in a family of athletes, sports were far more than just events that filled our family calendars. They were a way of life.
From gymnastics to soccer to basketball, I played them all.
I never dreamed of specializing in or picking just one sport to focus all of my time and attention on. I enjoyed the variety and unique challenges that came with each competitive season.
That was until, in the blink of an eye, an injury sidelined me from an entire season of high-school basketball.
In that moment of devastation, I knew.
This sport meant far more to me than all of the rest.
A fractured season
A stress fracture in my lower back.
Likely a direct result of overuse, only rest and rehabilitation would be the cure.
That meant one thing and one thing only.
My freshman basketball season was over before it could even begin. I would need to sit for the entirety of the season in order for my body to heal.
I was completely devastated.
I could not wrap my head around having to sit out a full season of basketball.
It was at that very moment that I knew, basketball meant far more to me than I had ever let myself admit.
I was going to do everything in my power to ensure that I never missed another opportunity to play the game that I loved.
Even if that meant taking a step back in other sports to ensure that I was healthy enough to compete when basketball season rolled around.
I wasn’t done yet.
Once I was cleared to play and the fracture had healed, I embarked on a journey unlike any other.
Prior to this point in my life, much of my basketball experience had come from shooting hoops at halftime of my brothers’ games with my dad or from playing in a local church league.
I needed to take my game to the next level.
I began playing AAU and club ball, attending camps, and working as hard as I could to enhance my basketball knowledge and skills.
It was during these moments that I started to gain some exposure.
Coaches were calling the house just to chat and my name was surfacing as one of the top players in the area.
This game was undoubtedly opening new windows of opportunity for me as I entered the midway point of my high-school journey.
At that point, however, I simply wanted to remain healthy and play the game that I loved.
Nothing more, nothing less.
A slam dunk
At the conclusion of my sophomore year of high school, however, that thought process began to change. I sat down with my coach and had a heart-to-heart moment.
I wanted to take this game and my talents to the next level of competition. I wanted to play college basketball at the Division I level and my coach believed that I had the grit, passion, and ability to make those dreams a reality.
While going through the recruiting process at the height of a global pandemic presented some unique challenges, I spent my junior year of high school unofficially visiting college campuses, speaking with coaches all across the country, and continuing to do all that I could to set myself apart from other athletes in the area.
One program stood out among the rest, and in the back of my mind, I instantly knew that I had found a home.
One afternoon, during my junior year of high school, Coach Starkey called and offered me my very first college scholarship and an opportunity to play basketball for Kent State — basketball at the Division I level.
It was a slam dunk of a decision for me. I knew I had found a home.
Going from a church-league player to a Division I recruit in such a short period of time was equally as exciting as it was humbling.
I was committed.
Two-way street
As much as I knew how committed I was to Kent State and the strong desire that I had to represent that University, I was about to learn just how much of a two-way street that commitment was.
Eight games into my senior year of high school basketball, I tore my ACL.
A routine drill at practice ended my senior season.
Once again, in just a blink of an eye, an entire basketball season had been taken from me.
This time, however, there was much more on the line.
While surgery was on the horizon and months and months of rehabilitation stood before me, I could only focus on one thing.
What about Kent State?
Very quickly I realized, the aforementioned thought needed no further consideration.
Throughout the entirety of my rehabilitation process, Kent State stuck by my side and remained just as committed to me as I was to them.
I was able to solely focus on my recovery and make a return to the game that I loved, stronger than ever before.
Being a member of Kent State's women's basketball team has been not only one of the highlights of my competitive journey but my life as a whole.
I remember last Thanksgiving, specifically, when our team traveled to Florida for a tournament and beat UCLA.
I entered the locker room after that win and was overwhelmed with emotions of complete joy and gratitude.
All of the adversity endured to be standing in that room, as a member of this team, and as a contributor to such a monumental victory for this program, was incredibly surreal.
While I am unsure what the future holds for me in terms of a career, I know one thing will remain constant.
I will continue to work to give back to this sport of basketball that I so deeply love and which has provided me with endless opportunities to live out a dream.
I’m not Dunn yet.
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