Two Lely girls basketball players escape war in Ukraine

Author: Zach Oliveri
Published: Updated:

Everything is different for Lely girls basketball players Sasha Rubanova and Sonia Kiritsa. They’re in a new country, new school and even playing a new style of basketball.

“In US, we don’t have time for offense so but in Ukraine we had 24 seconds and you cannot spend more time with the ball,” Sasha explained.

“We had to teach them that they couldn’t do the eurostep here,” Lely girls basketball head coach Jalen Outten said. “I think now they got the speed of the game and playing with our athletes here.”

The two joined the Lely girls basketball team from Ukraine. After spending time with their Ukrainian team in Latvia, they decided to come to the United States to stay safe from the ongoing war. Now, they’re living with a host family in Collier County.

“When you’re not alone, you again feeling better and you have friend near you,” Sasha said. “So friend who speak your language, friend who know situation in your country.”

For both of them, nothing was harder than saying goodbye to their families.

“I had close relationships with my parents with my brother,” Sasha said. “Me and my brother was going to same school so the whole time was near each other. And now I didn’t see my parents since June. So I’m on call with them every day but it’s a big difference that being near them, talk to them, hug them, spend time with them. And now I hopefully will be seeing them as fast as I can.”

“When you have them near you, you can hug them,” Sonia explained. “They can hug you back and they support you. And I knew that by leaving it was better for me, for my education and for my safety.”

Sasha arrived in August then Sonia followed in September. The two went from sharing a court together to a home with Elena Shaw and her family.

“Sasha definitely is more outgoing and talkative,” Shaw explained. “With Sonya she’s very shy. It too a while for her to come out of her shell. She wouldn’t laugh she wouldn’t talk. She was very serious. Even after a few weeks of being here, you can see how her spirit was lifted.”

That was clear during our conversation with Sonia and Sasha as Sonia even joked about the two being like sisters.

All jokes aside, Sonia and Sasha both feel the same. They’ve grown here but they miss their families. They miss their home.

“I feel more independent more responsible more confident and it’s easier for me and my future because I’ll be ready for adult life,” Sasha said. “But sometimes I just want to go home to my parents and don’t feel responsible independent just rest with my parents.”

Even though they are thousands of miles away, their thoughts are still at home in Ukraine. So much so they send care packages home with their host family.

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