When Southwest canceled a Texas basketball team’s flight, they drove 16 hours to Florida

Chelsea Lott stood in the concourse of Dallas Love Field Airport the day after Christmas heartbroken.

Her flight, along with a dozen of her teammates’, had just been canceled. Their dream of playing a basketball tournament in Florida — a chance to play against good teams from around the country — was in jeopardy.

“Oh, this is just our luck,” Chelsea told the Star-Telegram. “Go figure. We’ve been planning this trip for almost a year, and then the day comes, we’re about to leave, and all the airplanes decide to quit.”

Thousands of American travelers’ plans were upended when Southwest Airlines canceled nearly 68% of flights Dec. 26. Among those left stranded in Dallas was the girls basketball team from Lipan, a small farming community an hour southwest of Fort Worth.

Lipan High School’s basketball program had signed up for the KSA Basketball Holiday Tournament in Kissimmee, Florida, nearly a year ago. Hoops royalty in Texas Class 2A, the Lipan girls team are constantly eyeing new and better competition. Why not travel to play teams drawn from around the nation?

“The girls have been looking forward to this all year,” said Nancy Holtsford, team photographer and mother hen.

The Arctic blast that swooped down on most of the United States before Christmas wreaked havoc on the weather, freezing tightly managed airline schedules and stranding the Lipan team.

For the Lady Indians, this was a desperate time.

‘Please help us get to Florida today!’

Chelsea’s mother, Vanessa Lott, sent out a plea to Mark Cuban on Twitter: “Our flight got canceled at Dallas Lovefield. Our girls have done fundraisers for this trip all year. Please help us get to Florida today!”

No rock of possible redemption was left unturned. A friend of the team reached out to actor Matthew McConaughey. They called NASCAR. They needed a flight, buses, anything.

They’d been dreaming of Florida for months. This was a chance to play against very good teams at the Gaylord Palms Resort near Orlando, Florida.

As soon as school was out in the spring, the kids had set out to raise money for the trip. Text messages were sent out by the girls as early as mid May — each attempting to raise $500 for the trip to Florida.

This was important to them. They had to come up with a plan quickly.

“We knew we were gonna get there one way or another,” Chelsea said, safely on the breakfast buffet line at their Florida hotel. “We were just really, really hoping that it was gonna be on an airplane … it’s quite the haul (on the road).”

In the end it was decided that renting three vans and driving east was the best ticket to the tournament. “Creepy white vans,” according to Chelsea in a post on social media as the team headed out of Dallas.

That’s 16 hours and change on the road.

“We listened to music, talked about conspiracy theories, we napped … I actually got nine hours of sleep from Dallas to Florida,” Chelsea said. “So by the time we got here, I think we pulled up at 5:30 this morning, I took a shower, slept for maybe 30 minutes, woke back up and we’re down here eating breakfast, getting ready to go to Universal (Studios Florida).”

Although most people on the trip did not get as much sleep as Chelsea, Holtsford reported spirits were high this morning. The Lipan Lady Indians play the Buena Vista (Orlando, Florida) Vipers at 6:30 p.m.

“Oh, yeah, we’re ready. We’re excited,” Chelsea said about playing their first game.

In Lipan’s wiry star forward’s mind, there was no question they would play in the tournament.

“They are resilient and full of confidence,” Holtsford said. “A wonderful trait their coach instilled in them.”

This was just another adventure in the Lady Indians’ basketball journey this year. Holtsford even made t-shirts for the girls that they could wear on the flight over.

“Well, now they’re van ride shirts,” Holtsford wrote on Facebook. “All nighters!!!”

As the caravan pulled up to their Orlando-area hotel, a relieved Chelsea said: “I’m good. Better now that we finally arrived in Florida.”