LENEXA, Kan. — When Mary Claire Zacharias asks players and coaches about executing a game plan, it sounds like the work of a seasoned broadcaster. In reality, the St. James Academy sophomore is only in her second season calling games.
Zacharias is a broadcaster for the Thunder, providing commentary and analysis after a neck injury ended her playing career before it could truly begin.
“I never would have thought that I’d be doing this,” Zacharias said. “But God’s plan is always greater.”
Before her injury, Zacharias played club basketball and club soccer for several years. Entering her freshman year, she suffered a neck injury in a car accident that left her unable to participate in contact sports again.
Rather than stepping away from athletics entirely, Zacharias searched for another way to stay connected to the game.
VOICE FOR EVERYONE | Share your voice with KSHB 41’s McKenzie Nelson
“She reached out to us about doing something during the basketball season,” said Cohen Merrick, who teaches broadcasting and media at the high school. “We started her on some camera work.”
Merrick said Zacharias was hesitant at first, but her confidence quickly grew.
“At first, she was a little timid about being on camera,” Merrick said. “But once she got it, every game she was killing it.”
Zacharias has since taken on multiple roles, including sideline reporter and color analyst, drawing attention to her knowledge of the game and on-air presence.
That attention reached a new level when ESPN reporter Holly Rowe gave Zacharias a shoutout, a moment that left her stunned.
“It meant a lot,” Zacharias said. “I was so taken aback. I didn’t even know what to say.”
Now, Zacharias hopes her story shows others that setbacks do not have to end dreams — they can reshape them.
“It doesn’t have to break you,” she said. “It can make you into the person you’re meant to be.”
—