By Melissa Yerkov
Times Sports Editor
Laura Grow has always had the right moves.
The Archbishop Ryan High School senior point guard has style and grace on the basketball court, having helped the Ragdolls to an 8-3 record in the Catholic League Northern Division thus far this season.
“We’re doing really well,” said Grow. “We’ve gotten really close as a team, and all of the sudden we’re clicking with everything. I think we have a lot of chemistry.”
But Grow’s rhythm flows far beyond the basketball court. She’s also an experienced violinist and performs with the Archbishop Ryan orchestra.
“I really like to play,” said Grow, who picked up the violin in third grade. “Music is nice. It’s fun to play and it’s challenging, but I’ve always just loved basketball.”
Grow will participate in Archbishop Ryan’s spring concert in a few months, but until then her mind is elsewhere.
The Ragdolls are wrapping up their regular season in the Catholic League. After three consecutive wins, Ryan lost to Conwell-Egan on Friday night, 60-49. Kim Hallowell led the Ragdolls in points with 19. On Conwell-Egan’s side, Carmen Tyson-Thomas ran the show, scoring 24. Ryan’s final battle before the playoffs was against Archbishop Wood on Feb. 12, after the Times went to press.
“We have a lot of kids that go out and contribute — whether it’s defend or rebound, pass the ball or score,” said coach John Farrington. “They work hard and they like to win.”
Grow has contributed 75 points this season, helping the Ragdolls outscore their opponents by 152 points. But the 5-foot-3 point guard wasn’t always a significant offensive contributor.
“When I came in, I was just a defensive player and I think I’ve definitely gotten better at offense,” she said. “I like playing defense more because you can control it. You can get in someone’s face and control what they’re doing, rather than on offense, you take it as it comes.”
Luckily for the Ragdolls, she is decent at both. She averaged just 1.6 points per game for the past two seasons. This year she has doubled those numbers, boosting her average to 3.4.
“She’s not out there trying to pad stats or anything like that. She plays unselfish and she plays hard,” said Farrington. “Most of the time we have her guarding the other team’s best offensive player.”
And since she’s just over 5 feet tall, that’s not always an easy task.
“When you’re in the lane and you turn around and see a big player, it can be scary,” said Grow. “I try to use my speed to my advantage. I always try to be quicker than them.”
Grow has had plenty of practice on the courts since developing a fondness for the game as a child. She has been a player for the Renegades AAU squad, Snyder Middle School, the St. Charles CYO team, and now with the Ragdolls.
“I’ve been playing as long as I can remember,” said Grow. “Going to practice all the time can be tough, and sometimes I really don’t feel like it, but being able to play as a team and win a game by one point — that accomplishment is really the best feeling in the world.”
Grow is a pretty good student, too. She’s ranked in the top 10 of her senior class and is a member of the National Honor Society and the Community Service Club at Ryan.
Next year, Grow plans to head for Richard Stockton College in New Jersey, about 20 minutes from Atlantic City. She wants to play basketball and study physical therapy.
“I’ve been around physical therapy my whole life,” said Grow. “My little brother has Down syndrome, so he’s always been in physical therapy, and I knew I wanted to do something like that. I want to help people. And I won’t be sitting at a desk. I like the idea of having a hands-on job.”
Grow’s close relationship with her family — little brother Kevin, 12, and parents Earl and Dorothy — fuels her motivation in all of life’s ventures. The trio always can be found in the stands at any Ragdolls game or Ryan concert.
“I’m definitely going to miss my family and my little brother,” said Grow, who plans to live on campus at Stockton College. “He’s always around me. Every time I come into the gym or come home, he runs over and picks me up. He’s big now. He’s bigger than me. I’m definitely going to miss him the most because he’s always there. But they’ll definitely come down to Stockton too.”
Grow is getting ready now for the Catholic League playoffs. And down the road is the school’s annual spring concert.
“I haven’t been playing as much as I’d like to,” she said, “but I still get to play in the concerts.”
Grow regularly participates in Archbishop Ryan’s two annual concerts — one at Christmas and the other in the spring. She’s also taking a music-appreciation course at Holy Family University.
“I love it. It’s challenging, but it’s really interesting,” she said.
Grow, 17, is taking the course because of her participation as a Diocesan Scholar at Archbishop Ryan. The top 30 students ranked academically are invited to participate in the scholars program. Candidates must formally apply, write an essay and undergo an interview. Archbishop Ryan allows the student who has been accepted to choose their classes and the school pays for the course.
Grow also is enrolled in a psychology course at Holy Family. She attends the college classes on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, then finishes her regular classes at Archbishop Ryan.
“I wanted to take two classes in the same day when I had free mornings,” said Grow. “I was hoping to take psychology anyway, and the schedules matched up, so it all worked out really good.
“Some mornings I go to Holy Family and some mornings I tutor for NHS,” she said, referring to the National Honor Society. “Then I finish my classes here and go to practice. It’s a lot of work, but I know it’ll be worth it.” ••
Sports editor Melissa Yerkov can be reached at 215-354-3035 or myerkov@phillynews.com