Jake Heagen has plenty of inspiration at Findlay

FINDLAY – Competitive passion is a deeply embedded genetic in the Heagen family.

Jim, the father, was a former standout athlete at Tri-Valley. His children — Matt, Kristyn and Jake — were All-Ohio selections in their respective sports at John Glenn.

Perhaps the most fiery of all, though, was their exuberant mother Shelly, who followed them to all of their events from grade school to college — even during her lengthy battle with cancer that took her life on Oct. 24, 2014.

Those memories have driven Jake, who dedicated his senior basketball season at Findlay in her memory.

“It’s been extremely difficult for me,” Jake said. “I can’t imagine it’s going to get any easier. I can’t compare it to anything I’ve ever gone through. But I’m fortunate to have a really great family to help me get through it. I can’t be there as much as I want to be, but I’m thankful for the chances I get.”

Shelly was always there for support, even in her most trying times. That’s something Jake said inspired his play.

“I never once heard her complain,” he said. “And she came to all my games, even when she probably shouldn’t have.”

The 6-5 forward, who leads the team ain scoring (15.0 per game) and rebounding (5.7), leads the Oilers into the first round of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament at 6 p.m. today against host Saginaw Valley State.

More important than production, he said, was the impact as one of the team’s leaders in a season when the school dismissed starting point guard Alphonso Baity in early October.

Baity figured to be one of the top players in the conference, and his absence meant Jake would be relied upon even more to set an example for younger players, including freshmen forced to contribute earlier than normal.

It was a role he embraced, drawing back on the lessons taught to him by his parents and coaches like John Glenn boys coach Greg Woodard, who Jake said next to his parents “has impacted me more than anyone else in my life.”

That leadership also extends to the classroom, where Jake carries a 3.75 GPA in business and in February was named a Capital One Academic All-District 4 selection by the College Sports Information Directors of America. It puts him in line to be a potential Academic All-American.

This, despite dealing with the trying family times.

“All through high school (Woodard) would preach these lessons on adversity and being tough,” Jake said. “When you’re young, you don’t think about it. But I was so prepared for the college level because of how he ran his program. When I got here, I realized our practices (at John Glenn) were just as tough. That got me prepared.”

Woodard said Findlay, which won a Division II national championship the year before Heagen arrived, was a near-perfect fit.

Two of his players before Jake, Crooksville’s Brett Dalrymple and John Glenn’s Dorian Bass, also played for the Oilers.

“Findlay is just a great place, good people,” Woodard said. “Good solid foundation, they recruit good kids, and at that point the ball is in their hand. The big thing, at least with Dorian and Jake, those were kids that didn’t get caught up in that Division I thing. So many kids think they have to go to D-I and will go somewhere to a bad program. Those two never got caught up in that. Those two went to a good D2 program and had great careers.”

Woodard said Jake’s upbringing has been the biggest factor in his success. The John Glenn coach said he often jokes to Matt and Jake that he “didn’t get to coach the toughest one of the three,” referring to Kristyn’s tenacity as a three-sport athlete.

But Jake has more than held his own.

“He hates to lose — that’s probably what drove him in college,” Woodard said. “They didn’t sugarcoat it. If he didn’t play well, he didn’t hear ‘good job.’ They told him how it was.”

In Jake’s case, he’s playing at his best while the team has finally hit its stride entering the biggest game of the season in their bid for a fourth GLIAC tournament title in as many years.

That, too, is no coincidence.

“I always try to play with a lot of passion,” Jake said. “I just know what drives me is that (my mom) is there watching over me and watching me play.”

sblackburn@zanesvilletimesrecorder.com

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Twitter: @SamBlackburnTR