Gallaudet University senior Easter Faafiti hits the basketball court with teammates this weekend in hopes of not only winning the North Eastern Athletic Conference title but also extending a playing season that already has changed the minds of much of the hearing public.
“Just because I can’t hear doesn’t mean I’m not as athletically talented as somebody else,” says Faafiti, who shifts seamlessly from center to forward to guard. “I hope all people would be open to anybody who has a disability.”
Indeed, this team of deaf and hard of hearing women boasts an overall 23-2 record-including a 20-game winning streak to start the season. They’re hosting the NEAC tournament as its top seed. Faafiti has been named NEAC Student-Athlete of the Week a record five times this season, including this week.
Adds coach Kevin Cook, who does hear and learned American Sign Language once he took the job four years ago: “Because of us, there’s a growing awareness that there are differences between deaf people and hearing people, but we’re all the same.”
Yet whenever the Bison compete on the road, fans of opposing teams are befuddled by the fact that Gallaudet players cannot hear referee whistles nor Cook yelling from the sidelines. In-game communication consists largely of Cook signing, with his assistants and bench players immediately repeating the signs to ensure that every team member on the court sees them from wherever they are. Cook estimates the delay costs the Bison about six points per game. Furthermore, opposing teams can eventually figure out what plays he’s calling based on the signs.
All this, Cook shrugs off, just as he doesn’t let his Parkinson’s disease get the better of him. “They still have to stop us on the court.”
So far this season, most teams have not. Two wins this weekend would not only capture the NEAC championship, Cook says, but ought to land the Bison a berth in the 64-team NCAA Tournament and March Madness.
