Kennadi Mollett, 19, tragically died days before Thanksgiving in a car crash in Wayne County, Kentucky. While she was a freshman at the University of Pikeville, she used to cheer and play basketball at Martin County High and Tug Valley High School. In a basketball game between the two teams following her death, they honored her with a moment of silence, wore shirts in her memory, and set up a memorial.
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The Martin County team, the Lady Cardinals, wore shirts during warm-up inspired by one of Mollett's phrases when huddling: "Family, 1,2,3." "She always led us in our huddle," Heach Coach Robin Newsome said, according to FOX34. "End of our huddle, was always 'Family 1,2,3? or '1,2,3 Family' and so, we have a shirt today, that we've got printed up that if anyone wants to give a donation that goes back to her family."
The Tug Valley team, the Lady Panthers, paid homage to Kennadi during warm-up too. They wore shirts with one of Mollett's pictures on their backs. Her former Tug Valley coach, Seth Ooten, remembered Kennadi Mollett dearly saying that "her smile was always bigger than what her talent was and she was a great basketball player."
"She's touched a lot of people's hearts and to see that they've renamed this game that's between her old high school and this high school," said Alyssa Alen. "She would have loved it, she would have absolutely loved it."
A Touching Tribute
Before the game, that took place on Sunday, November 30, both teams joined in a moment of silence. Moreover, the Lady Panthers and the Lady Cardinals shared a huddle, a special tribute to Kennadi Mollett who played for both teams, shouting "Family, 1,2,3" in an emotional manner.
Multiple accounts report that the Lady Panthers retired Mollett's shirt number, 23.. Her family received a plaque following the game. Furthermore, the Martin County High School set up a memorial outside their gym, expected to remain there for weeks.
"She always took the younger kids under her wing. I always said she was an angel sent to me from God," Coach Newsome said. "Looking back on it, she lived every second of her life to the fullest."
