8-year-old Austin had been saved by his father in a crash that occured in 2003. The National Transportation Safety Board said Stephen, again the pilot, hadn't planned correctly - running out of gas and smashing into a telephone pole. Austins siser Lindsay, 11, and brother Ian, 5, along with his mother, Julie all burned to death. Austin survived after his dad threw him out the plane's window.
All during his recovery, Hatch promised one thing: He'd return to basketball despite the emotional pain.
Now 18, Austin made his return to Loyola High School (CA) basketball Wednesday. It was his first appearance on court since the 2011 crash. So what'd he do? He hit that three. And folks were quite happy.
“It was the best technical foul I’ve ever been a part of,” Loyola Coach Jamal Adams said.
“He hit a three and our bench erupted,” Adams said. “It was unbelievable what that kid has gone through and how hard he’s worked. That kid has taught me you can come back from anything, that nothing is impossible. It was a spiritual moment.”
Hatch was happy too. For the team.
As I said after the game, my three was pretty cool, but, more importantly, we're now 14-0 😎
— Austin Hatch (@ahatch33) January 9, 2014**Follow us on Twitter, Subscribe by Email, View via Our Mobile Site, or Return Home
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