TOWSON, Md. – Senior Mariah Gray is a Towson legacy. Her parents, Pamela and Paul-Sean, are both Towson alumni. You can find them at Tiger sporting events all year.
 
The guard hails from Ellicott City, Maryland and stayed close to home for college. Gray is one of two players on Towson's roster who have played here for the last four seasons.
 
"I came to Towson because I knew the atmosphere, my parents are alumni so I had been here for homecoming games, football, basketball games when they were still in the Towson Center," Gray said. "I kind of knew what the culture was about so when it came time to commit and going to school I decided to come where I knew what it was like and what to expect."
 
Gray sees her family constantly while earning her degree and playing the game she loves. She stayed through the coaching change when head coach Diane Richardson took over in the 2017-18 season, a relationship that had already been established since Richardson coached high school locally while Gray was younger.
 
"I had known Coach Richardson from high school basketball," Gray said. "Her coaching style was something I knew already and I like it. Seeing her at Riverdale, Maryland and West Virginia and then she came here to take over, I didn't want to leave because I know how she coaches."
 
What Gray, like several of her teammates, experienced next would be a plethora of emotions. Two seasons under Richardson's direction and Gray was going home with a ring.
 
Her favorite memory playing college basketball was the day she scored her career-high, 10 points at Hofstra her sophomore season, but the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Championship banner is right up there.
 
"It felt like…. like all the hard work paid off," Gray said. "Everything we've done in practice, what we do in games, getting extra shots up, lifting, all of that paid off to get what we wanted and it was a championship. So, freshman year was tough, wondering if we were going to win more games, sophomore year was a little better. Finally last year was like 'okay, we know what we can do'."
She also said the trip to Storrs, Connecticut is something she will never forget.
 
"Going to UConn, no matter if you win or lose, the fact that we played against a powerhouse women's basketball team and seeing that atmosphere. Being able to be there, all the media that came into the locker room, it was a really different experience. We're able to say 'I went to the NCAA Tournament,' not many people can say that, so including the championship going to the tournament are two big moments."
 
All of these good things, winning a banner, winning 20 games in a season, playing in the Big Dance, did not come easy for Gray.
 
There were and are days where her body struggles and she feels that. Gray has type 1 diabetes and suffers from ulcerative colitis. Playing a Division I sport and being a full-time student is difficult enough, let alone having two chronic illnesses that you have to pay close attention to.
 
Learning to push through adversity and persevering are two big things she will take away from being a Tiger.
 
"Not many people know, but my sophomore year I was starting to come into my own but I got sick so I had to sit out," Gray said. "I remember our game against Northeastern that year, we were in foul trouble and I had to decide if I wanted to just sit there on the bench and or help my team. I put my jersey on and did what I could, in the second half I was so cold, that was a moment that stuck out to me. If I can get through that I can get through anything."
 
"Mostly I took it upon myself, thankfully I have my family and my teammates to support me. I saw my doctor and changed medications and my body was fighting to stay healthy. The person that I am, I want to do what I can to help my team, I put people before myself. It's hard sometimes, I have type 1 diabetes and ulcerative colitis, so it's like a fight in my body. Sometimes I don't know which one is making me sick. I really have learned to put my body first."
 
Gray certainly has persevered through it all. She has two more games on her home court and only six games left in the regular season. In May she will finish with a degree in exercise science. She has some options open about what she might do next.
 
She said she might even go to school to become an accountant, like her mother. For now, she's embracing the time she has left.
 
"I feel like it came too fast, I remember being a freshman and not really knowing what's going to happen. Now, we won a championship and now I'm about to graduate, like where did the time go? I'm ready, but it will be sad."