Like many athletes, the basketball court is a haven for
Kate Koval. It's a place where troubles and worries take a backseat, including thinking about the war in Ukraine.
Koval, a 6-foot-5 junior post at
Long Island Lutheran (Brookville, N.Y.), immigrated two years ago to play basketball with dreams of chasing a college and possibly professional career.
The war came to her home country when Russia invaded Ukraine in March 2022.
"It was rough last year," Koval said. "This year is a little better. My mom is here (in Canada) and I have the ability to visit her.
"Before it was terrible. I couldn't call them and when I talked to them they said ‘Everything's fine' but I knew it wasn't. I couldn't be assured he was safe."
In addition to Koval's mother Natalia being in Canada, brothers Mykolaa (23) and Oleskii (15) attend school in the United States. But her father Oleksandr remains in Kyiv, where he works as a pharmacist and helps protect her neighborhood with other men.
"He's trying to live a normal life," Koval said. "If you're not fighting, you're supporting. I don't think he would move.
"My grandmother is still there and it's hard to leave your whole life."
For Koval, the decision to come to America was easy. She was good at basketball and saw a future on the court.
Basketball is a haven for Long Island Lutheran center Kate Koval. The Ukrainian immigrant still has family members in her war-torn home country, including her father and grandmother. (Photo: Darin Sicurello)
"I want to play college and maybe someday in the WNBA," she said, adding she definitely prefers the calmness of Long Island compared with the hustle and bustle of New York City. "It was not my favorite place. It's a wild city."
Long Island Lutheran head coach Christina Raiti said Koval came to the school through a basketball connection she's had for ages.
"He's sent me a lot of film before, but when I saw Kate I called him and said I need to Zoom with her tonight," Raiti said. "When he said ‘You've never taken me up on anyone I've sent' I told him ‘You've never showed me Kate before.' "
But basketball wasn't her first love.
"I used to do ballet," she said, adding that a coach saw her and asked why she wasn't playing. "I was always the tallest and my dad made me go.
"I thought ‘This is stupid.' He made me keep going and I started liking it because it was easy and I was good at it."
Raiti said the ballet training shows in Koval's footwork. The Class of 2024 center is averaging 15 points per night, helping Long Island Lutheran go 13-2 this season and earn the No. 4 spot in this week's MaxPreps Top 25.
Her skill was on display in late December at the Nike TOC in Arizona, where the Crusaders beat Sidwell Friends (Washington, D.C.) and La Jolla Country Day (La Jolla, Calif.) to grab the title of one of the most competitive tournaments in the game.
That event also provided Koval with a chance to reunite with her parents, who were on hand to see their daughter shine on the court.
"It wasn't a surprise (that they were coming)," she said. "But it was amazing. He would always come to my games and when I moved … it's special for him to see me play."
Raiti remembers last season right after the war broke out and the genuine concern for Kate over the unknown going on in her life.
"We were supposed to play and I knew she was worried because she hadn't heard from her family," Raiti said. "I told her 'I'll cancel the game if you want me to' and she looked at me like I had 10 heads.
"There are many things you can prepare for, but nothing could prepare me for that. I'm sure I wasn't perfect, but we told her we'd support her however she needed. This is bigger than basketball."
Koval said her teammates have all rallied around her.
"They help me take my mind off things and make sure I'm not by myself … like I'm crazy and can't be left alone," she said laughing.
And throughout the end of last season and into this year, Koval said basketball has been her haven.
"It's the only time when I don't think about what's going on at home," Koval said. "No one really understands what you're going through, but basketball, I don't think about anything."
Koval said her teammates and coach Christina Raiti have helped get through dealing with the worries of her father being in Ukraine as the war nears its first anniversary. (Photo: Darin Sicurello)
