Basketball had long been a safe haven for Prince. She grew up towering over her peers and feeling like a perpetual outsider in her small Texas town less than an hour north of Austin. After the Longhorns' coaching staff started to show interest in her game in middle school, Prince's mother suggested she keep a journal to write down her goals. One of her first entries included "UT full commitment," "20 prospect letters by beginning of ninth grade," "be able to dunk" and "be loved by everyone." She dreamed of how it would feel to be a college basketball star. As Prince struggled to find her confidence and her place in the world, the basketball court was often the only place she felt she fit in.
Prince starred on her high school team in Liberty Hill, Texas. She was picked for the McDonald's All American team during her senior year and also landed on the roster of the U.S. under-18 national team. She was ranked as one of the top 10 prospects in the nation. Prince was pinching herself when she moved into her new dorm on the University of Texas campus in the summer of 2018, having passed up offers to play for the sport's traditional powerhouses in order to suit up for the team she grew up loving.
The first sign that her dream had been derailed hit Prince hard as she lay writhing in pain on the baseline of a hardwood court in Mexico City.
