MISSOULA — Draya Wacker's time on the basketball court is a testament to will and perseverance.
As a junior in the small Montana town of Melstone, Wacker tore her ACL, drastically affecting the latter half of her high school career.
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Still, she arrived in Missoula as a recruited member of the Montana Lady Griz. But hardships struck again when Wacker tore the ACL in her other knee in her first season with the program, marking a pair of devastating setbacks.
"The mental side's hard too," Wacker said. "You tear one in high school and then you're still playing against competition you're used to, but when you tear one in college, it takes a long time too. Already from high school to college is a jump, but then you sit out your whole first year and you got to jump back into it."
Wacker redshirted her second year with the Lady Griz to get her feet under her, then saw her first minutes a year ago as she continued to adjust to the speed, size and overall flow and aspects of the college game.
But this year she's begun to crack the rotation more regularly and contribute at Montana. She recently had a career-high in points against Eastern Washington with 12, and is averaging 14.3 minutes per game to go with 3.6 points and 2.5 rebounds.
"It's been a long road and really rewarding at the same time," Wacker said. "Every year it's been a little better, a little better. And obviously now I'm getting some minutes and it's rewarding to see all the work I've done.
"I wouldn't change it. I think just not having my first three years go the way that I wanted or that I dreamed of has just made me more hungry and like more appreciative of what I'm getting now. So it's something that I'm grateful every time I lace up my shoes and I'm able to play and I don't think that will ever change."
A Class C basketball product, Wacker grew up ranching, farming and hooping, including on varsity as a small eighth grader.
"This gets brought up in the locker room at least once a week all the time," she said with a laugh. "'Draya, you graduated with six kids. How did you even have a team?' (My teammates) just can't really understand. I've brought a couple of them home with me and they're like, 'What? How is this even possible?'
"I think just playing against boys and always in the gym. There's nothing else to do other than work cows and be in the gym. So that's just helped me get here, I think."
And that support from her hometown built her.
"The fans that we have here remind me a lot of the people in Melstone and I am just super grateful I got to grow up there," Wacker said. "I wouldn't change it. The people I met and played against helped me get here."
So Wacker and the rest of the Lady Griz gear up for the first Brawl of the Wild of the season Saturday at Montana State, a game that holds significance for those from the Treasure State, something Wacker knows well and carries with pride.
"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else," Wacker said. "I think that playing for your state is really cool and impactful. And I mean, like I said, where I grew up, every time I go home, everybody's checking in on me and they care. And I don't know if it's like that (at) other places, but I know that it's really special.
"It's awesome. I just look back at those days that like I was sitting on the bench and hurt and just dreaming of being on the floor, you know? So to be able to get an opportunity to play and contribute a little bit more is all I've ever dreamed of."
