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Women's Basketball
Illinois wesleyan makes donation to cancer cause
IWU donation stirs emotions in rival coach
By Randy Kindred
Pantagraph Columnist
As a breast cancer survivor, Lori Kerans has become a leader in the fight against the disease.
The Millikin University women's basketball coach organizes a Coaches vs. Cancer fund-raiser at the school each year, with proceeds going to cancer research.
She is active in increasing awareness in Central Illinois, spreading the word whenever, and wherever, she can.
"I do a lot of speaking about it, and make a lot of public appearances," Kerans said. "And I never get emotional."
The subject is too important, too pressing, to allow emotion to get in the way.
Yet, on Feb. 19, moments before Millikin faced rival Illinois Wesleyan, Kerans' eyes welled, her hands trembled, her heart jumped into her throat.
She knew IWU coach Mia Smith and her players had decided to forgo one team meal, scale back on another and donate the money to the American Cancer Society. She was aware the Titans planned to present the check to her before the game at Millikin's Griswold Center.
Still ...
No holding back
"When (IWU senior) Hannah Meharry handed me that check and gave me a hug, I lost it," Kerans said. "I think that's one of the neat things about humanity. You never know when that will happen.
"A kid looking you in the eye and saying, 'Here, coach, we did this for you,' sends you right over the edge."
Kerans was so moved, she nearly dropped the sealed envelope containing the check. She handed it to a trainer, who delivered it to a representative from the American Cancer Society.
Kerans didn't even know the amount of the donation. The fact there was one, and from Millikin's biggest rival, was all that mattered.
"It was our Senior Night, and we were about to play Wesleyan to try to earn a conference championship," Kerans said. "There were all of the things people associate with athletics -- the competition, the rivalry.
"But all of a sudden, smacked against that was one of the most heartfelt things I've ever received. That's one reason I appreciate the Division III level and a classy program like Wesleyan. You can do that a minute before the game starts, yet when that ball went up, I'm sure all Hannah (Meharry) was thinking about was how to beat us."
Beating Millikin has been difficult in Kerans' 19 seasons. She has a 377-120 record, including a 24-2 mark for this year's NCAA Tournament-bound team.
Biggest victory
Yet, the wins didn't mean much in the fall of 1997, when Kerans was diagnosed with breast cancer. She underwent treatment through March 1998, and has been healthy ever since.
A few days before the Feb. 19 game, IWU's Smith heard Kerans on a Decatur radio station promoting Millikin's Coaches vs. Cancer event. Smith, whose two great-grandmothers were breast cancer victims, went to her players and proposed the idea of donating meal money.
"We're females in a sport where breast cancer is prominent," Smith said. "You look at the statistics and one out of 10 females around you will have problems with breast cancer. I thought if we could do something to help, we should do it."
Adding to Smith's motivation was her connection to Kerans. The two played against each other in high school and college before becoming coaching counterparts in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin.
Making the donation in Kerans' honor -- Smith said it came to "about $75" -- contributed to a memorable night in which Millikin edged the Titans in overtime, 81-76.
"There was the human, compassion side (before the game), and then on the floor both teams are out there fighting to protect what they have," Smith said. "What a great game it was.
"We stopped to eat after the game, and several Millikin fans were there. They were very complimentary about the donation and the game itself. That says a lot for the girls on our team."
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