She was a three-year starter for the Washington girls’ basketball team and gave every ounce of energy she had to help the Pam Pack win games. On Friday, Washington High School will get a chance to say thank you when it inducts Evelyn Ewing into the Washington Walk of Fame along with Marquin Hill, Mark Gray and the 1951-52 boys basketball team. The ceremony will take place during halftime of the Pam Pack football game against Jacksonville.
Ewing said that when she received word of her induction she was overwhelmed with joy.
“I was so excited I didn’t know what to say,” Ewing said. “I played so many years ago, it was 1948, ‘49 and ’50. I said, ‘You want me?’ I just couldn’t get over that, I’m very excited.”
Standing at 5-8, Ewing played forward for Washington, and with her diverse style of play, she was way ahead of her time.
“At the time that I was playing you had to play halfcourt, not fullcourt,” Ewing said. “I was tough. I was a forward but I could always get loose and hit a long shot. There weren’t any three-pointers back then but I could play away from the basket and underneath the basket. I was a great long shooter.”
Ewing estimates that she averaged around 10-12 points per game on a Pack team that was very successful.
“We had a good team,” Ewing said. “We had three forwards and we were all tall, skinny girls. Everybody dreaded playing us because we were so tall and we could also handle the ball … We were known around here.”
Ewing was named captain her last two years at Washington, and it would be badge of honor she wore proudly.
“It felt good, because I felt like I was the best player,” Ewing said with a laugh. “I knew basketball and I still love the game today, believe it or not. I knew how to play and it felt good being named the captain.”
Despite all her success, Ewing said her best moments had nothing to do with statistics.
“My favorite moments would be when my daddy (Lemon Burke) would come and see me play,” Ewing said. “He was always there and just to see how excited he would get when we would win was great because he loved the game too.”
For Ewing, playing basketball at Washington High School has become a bit of a family tradition.
“I have four grandboys and they played ball there,” Ewing said. “And also, I have 13 great grandkids and they all played there. We’re a real basketball family.”