Maggie Dixon – Coach of West Point’s womwn’s basketball team, dies at 28…
(Maggie’s star shone for all who knew her…
“West Point – Gazing high above the picturesque setting of Trophy Point, sky watchers may be fortunate to spot the celestial wonder of a shooting star. Appearing out of nowhere, it flashes brilliance across the horizon and is gone before you can truly enjoy it.
Maggie Dixon’s life had been much the same. In a short time, she touched the lives of many and realized goals that others may only dream about while staying true to her core values of family and friendship.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Dixon died yesterday afternoon. The young coach jumped into our consciousness as the new face in women’s college basketball. Now she was in the thoughts and prayers of many as she battled a serious heart condition at the tender age of 28.
Life had been a whirlwind for Dixon since she decided to take over the Army women’s basketball program last October. She had no experience as a head coach and no time to adequately prepare for the rigors of a new job.
She worked 16-hour days, and had little time for anything other than her two families: her blood relatives and the players she inherited. But she was doing what she loved the most, coaching basketball.
Dixon joked about how the girls were giving her gray hair with their penchant for thrilling finishes. The best was saved for last when Army erased a late 10-point deficit to knock off Holy Cross and claim the Patriot League championship.
In an instant, Dixon was practically on top of the world. Cadets rushed the floor and a group of football players hoisted a surprised Dixon upon their shoulders in a victory celebration. She hugged her players and beamed with pride. She joked about the condition of the fashionable white jacket she wore that evening. She called it the most exciting night of her life.
In six short months the “kid” had done what no other Army basketball coach “” not Bobby Knight, not Mike Krzyzewski “” had ever done: she reached the NCAA tournament.
Granted, the NCAA experience proved humbling with a 48-point loss to mighty Tennessee. Dixon was still red-eyed from an emotional post-game meeting with her players when she was asked about the future of the program.
“I think the first thing is take a deep breath and kind of step back and enjoy the fact that we got to be here and play on this stage,” Dixon said.
Savoring the moment is a right that Dixon earned, only life is not fair sometimes. Three weeks removed from her basketball pinnacle and more than a year shy of her 30th birthday, Dixon was unexpectedly felled by a heart ailment on Wednesday and was in critical condition yesterday before her death in the afternoon.
The news was shocking, even on a campus that regularly honors its fallen graduates “” many of whom are still twenty-something like Dixon “” with somber ceremonies.
Dixon is the right fit for a rigid Academy, a coach who could be serious without taking herself too seriously. She worked her players hard but always found time to lighten up the moment when needed. She was a great ambassador for the school.
Everyone who met Dixon found her charming. She loved her family very much and couldn’t go a day without phoning them. She was gracious to strangers, and was obviously raised the right way, offering a welcome handshake and thanking people for allowing her to share her life’s story.
No one expected Dixon to remain a permanent fixture at West Point “” no shooting star ever stays in place “” but we certainly prayed for her well-being and hoped we would have had an opportunity to see her prowl the Army sidelines once again.”)
Ken McMillan’s column appears regularly in the Times Herald-Record. He can be reached at 845-346-3126, or kmcmillan@th-record.com.
We send prayers to the friends and families of a phenominal human being who was here for too short a time – and all the while giving thanks that she WAS here.
