TIRR Memorial Hermann congratulates the TIRR Hotwheels on achieving the highly coveted number one ranking in the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA) Junior Division.
"After 15 years in the NWBA, the TIRR Hotwheels are ranked number one out of the top 32 teams in the nation. Our team has been working hard to get here and we hope to bring the National Championship trophy home to Houston in April," said Hotwheels' head coach and Disability Sports Therapist at TIRR, Genny Gomez.
Founded in 1997, the TIRR Hotwheels is a competitive traveling junior wheelchair basketball team, comprised of elementary, middle and high school students age eight to 18. Before they compete in the NWBA National Competition this April in Louisville, Kentucky, the TIRR Hotwheels are hosting the Southwest Conference Championships on March 15 at the Pearland Recreation Center and Natatorium. Gomez is asking all fans to come out and cheer for the home team.
Since 1948, the NWBA has served as an athletic and competitive outlet for numerous paraplegic war heroes. Today the NWBA includes over 200 men's, women's, intercollegiate, and youth basketball teams throughout 22 conferences and seven divisions in the United States and Canada.
Colleges and universities seek players with exceptional determination, agility, and skill to participate in wheelchair basketball at the collegiate level. In the past, multiple Hotwheels players have been recruited and offered athletic scholarships to pursue higher education and athletic excellence.