Shane Moylan has a lot on his mind. The 16-year-old is finishing up his sophomore year at Roncalli High School, but has some unfinished business as well - on the volleyball court and off of it.
The Rebels are playing in regionals this weekend. It's been a short season for Shane. In fact, he just got into his first match three weeks ago.
"When I first got in, all the fans and my teammates cheered me on and they all clapped," Shane shared before an afternoon practice Tuesday.
"There wasn't a dry eye in the house including mine," added Coach Mitch Allard. "It's hard to talk about without getting choked up because he is such an inspiration."
You see, Shane has been battling Hodgkin's Lymphoma since 2012.
"I was in remission for two years and then they found a lump on the side of my ear," said Shane.
He couldn't play, so he asked if he could be student manager, but his teammates made him a video "telling him we got your jersey waiting on you," his dad, Jim, recalled. "They didn't let him down. When he came back three weeks ago, he got a great ovation. His team acknowledged when he took the court."
Shane will tell you he loves volleyball and it has been a great distraction for him.
"Returning to volleyball is more than just playing volleyball. It's been about normalcy about being normal and putting cancer behind him for good this time," his dad admitted.
If you ask, he will admit he is angry. He thought he had this thing beat but now he is fighting it again.
"I was really scared and mad. I was mad at everything," Shane revealed.
But he never let it show.
"He chooses to be positive about it all and he is smiling through it all and determined to beat this disease, and that is an inspiration to us all," Coach Allard said.
Which means he and the Roncalli Rebels have unfinished business.
