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Jan. 30, 2012

Kristi Kingma injured her knee this summer and will redshirt the 2011-12 season. But the senior will continue to blog throughout the year on GoHuskies.com. Here is the first in a series on the seniors who will end their UW careers after this season.

Hey Dawg fans! Just about halfway through Pac-12's and Senior Night is quickly approaching. Over the next few weeks I'll be highlighting and writing about members of the 2011-2012 senior class who just happen to be some of my very best friends. Without getting too sappy or emotional, I wanted to spend some time telling all of you just how special the senior class is and brag about my favorite qualities they each have.

I'll start with Mollie Williams, or "Molls" as I call her. Molls and I came in to UW together as freshman WAY back in 2008. We've been through everything together: the small dorm rooms for freshman year summer school, living at Stevens Court apartments for two years, trying to pick a major when it seemed like everyone else already had their life planned out, and finding ourselves in the training room more often than not.

It seems like forever ago that I picked Molls up at the airport before summer school started and as we were packing our bags to head down to Seattle, I realized I had close to 4 big suitcases and Mollie had one bag and a blanket. "Hey Mollie, where's all your stuff?"

"I have everything."

"You have everything you need for the next month and a half?"

"Yeah...clothes, bathroom stuff, my blanket and my Bible. I've got all I need."

I love this memory because Molls hasn't changed. She's simple, she knows what she truly values in her life and she's excited about every opportunity she's been given.

I asked some of my teammates to help me find words that best describe Molls to help tell a more complete story of who Mollie is and what she has meant to the team over the last 4 years.

"Kind hearted"
One of my favorite memories of Molls is when we worked Husky team camp together just after our sophomore year had ended. We were each coaching a team with about 7 or 8 elementary-aged girls and we were in the process of handing out weekly awards.

The awards went to the camp's best player, the camper with the best attitude, the best dressed camper, etc. A girl on Mollie's team who had been a great player throughout the week didn't win an award Molls felt she should have won. When camp was over, Molls quickly ran into the locker room, found one of her practice jerseys, signed it, and brought it out to the girl. She quietly told the girl, "You don't have to always be the best to get noticed. Thanks for being so much fun this week," and gave the girl her jersey. The little girl got the biggest smile and ran up to her mom to show her what she had just been given. This story is so Mollie. She has the desire to make people happy and make people feel special. She goes out of her way to do the right thing and does little things that make a huge difference.

"Hard working"
When Molls was a freshman, she could not squat the bar in the weight room. She was long, lanky, and frankly, kind of awkward. When we began conditioning in the summer, she fell off the treadmill. She flew right off the back and crashed onto the floor.

I can tell these stories because they're examples of just how far she has come. Today Molls in one of the strongest back squatters, bench pressers and one of our fastest post players running up and down the court. She has continued to tirelessly work on her coordination, her foot speed, and her strength since 2008 and no longer finds herself falling off treadmills.

In the 2010 season opener, Molls had missed every shot she had taken before hitting the game winner with 8 seconds left. She didn't care she had yet to make a shot but she was confident in herself and was willing to step up and take the shot when it mattered. I remember rushing to half court after the win and jumping up and down thinking about how far Molls had come in just over 3 years.

"Unique"
Molls is definitely her own person. She always has a story to tell and it usually comes without leaving out one single detail. Some of my teammates and I will laugh at how vividly Mollie will tell a story or how many hand gestures are needed to get her point across.

She's happy, she's joyful, and she loves life. She's always doing something to make the team laugh whether it's singing on the bus or asking curious questions. Mollie brings joyfulness and playfulness to the team and has never lost her unique personality throughout all of the ups and downs.

Other words that my teammates have used to describe Molls are: determined, loyal, caring, and polite. I could write story after story about Mollie and the unique energy she brings to the team.

Personally, I'm so proud of the strong faith Molls has kept throughout her time as a Dawg and been an encouraging friend to me time and time again. I've loved fighting for Mollie on the court, along side her as my teammate and, as I've spent this year on the sidelines, I've truly appreciated spending time with Mollie as my friend. Sitting out isn't easy but Molls has always been quick to encourage me in my rehab or remind me that the team misses me on the court. I'm so very thankful for Molls and everything she has meant to me and the program for the last few years.

We love you #34!

Go Dawgs!