Madison Academy’s Gracie Signs With UAB Blazers
MADISON- Receiving offers from both Jacksonville State and Alabama A&M, Jasmine Gracie decided instead to accept a similar offer to play basketball for the UAB Lady Blazers and signed an athletic scholarship during a recent ceremony. The senior player for the Madison Academy Lady Mustangs will study physical therapy at the school based in Birmingham.
“I decided on UAB as the coaching staff and team members were extremely nice during my visits and I felt as though I needed to be among them,” said Gracie. “I felt like they were my second family. I’m excited to go to UAB.”
The 6-foot-2 Gracie has been at Madison Academy since eighth grade. She came to the Mustangs’ program from nearby Monrovia Middle School where she played on the eighth grade team as a seventh grader. She picked up the sport just a year earlier as a way just to do something among the activities in the school.
While at Madison Academy she has earned All-State Honorable Mention as a sophomore and was selected to the Class 4A Girls State Championship All-Tournament Team for both the Mustangs’ back-to-back state championships in 2017 and 2018. Among her teammates at Madison Academy she was voted for the Clutch Award and goes by her nickname of ‘Jazz.’
Her junior season at Madison Academy was certainly one of struggles. She suffered a torn ACL during summer workouts prior to last year’s schedule and only returned just in time for the post-season playoffs. She made good timing in her recovery helping the Mustangs to a state title.
This year, the Mustangs have moved up to the Class 5A classification with sights set on winning their third straight state title. Gracie said, “We’re looking at the challenge before us and we have bought into what the coaches are teaching us. To win in the larger classification we are focusing on maximizing our potential.”
The daughter of Alvin and Monica Gracie, the newly signed athlete carries a 3.4 grade point average and looks forward to her next step in her life at UAB.
“The school is regarded as one of the best institutions in the areas to provide me with a quality education,” said Gracie. “I wouldn’t have been able to get this far in my endeavors without God and my strong faith.”
