Knihinicki battles cancer on the court

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Mackenzie Knihinicki was just finishing up high school - one step closer to playing college volleyball at Daemen - when everything changed.

"I was actually going for a checkup at my doctor's office, and I noticed I had a larger lump above my collarbone," said Knihinicki.

That lump turned out to be cancerous. Mackenzie went through four cycles of chemotherapy, then 14 days of radiation treatment. Still, this fall she showed up ready to play at Daemen.

"I was really determined to play," said Knihinicki.

"When she came in, the first thing you see is the shiny top of her haid," said Head Coach Mark Parisi. "I said, 'I didn't realize anybody could look so good that way'."

But on the court, she still had a ways to go. The radation zapped a lot of her strength.

"I was really frustrated because the normal things I used to do that were like nothing to me, were so much harder," said Knihinicki.

But she kept at it. Last week she returned to practice, and she hopes to make her college debut Tuesday night.

"She is such an inspiration," said teammate Katie Auge.

"This kind of puts it into perspective... what Mackenzie's done. What it's meant to her to be a part of the team," said Parisi.

"At the end of my treatment, I was completely down and out," said Knihinicki. "I could barely walk. But now that I'm here today, it's been an incredible journey from then to now."

That journey is just beginning. Daemen College will host "Spike for Strength Night" Tuesday night at 7pm to raise money and awareness for Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. Daemen will play Roberts Wesleyan in the game.