09/24/2026
We Run As One is a summer community basketball tournament run by Apex for Youth, giving young athletes from 4th through 12th grade across NYC a place to compete, connect, and build a sense of belonging through basketball.
This year, our Apex Lady Ballers made history. The girls took the court, competed, and championed the basketball community.
They came from different backgrounds, but on the court, they became one team.
Together, they became the first Apex team to win We Run As One in 14 years. 🏆
Swipe to see Apex’s girls’ basketball team journey from week 1 to the Championship Game. 🏀💛
📷: Anh Nguyen
It started with a group of middle school girls who signed up to play basketball — many of them meeting each other for the first time.
As coaches evaluated the group, the goal wasn’t simply to choose the most skilled players. We looked at effort, coachability, basketball fundamentals, willingness to learn, and commitment to attend practices and games.
This was the beginning of a group of girls with different personalities, experiences, and skill levels who would become the Lady Apex Ballers.
Becoming a team didn’t happen overnight. Week by week, the girls worked on communication and trust and worked hard to improve as a team.
Game by game, they learned how to compete together. They cheered each other on, picked each other up, and stopped playing as individuals.
Then the confidence came. With every game, they felt a little more like they belonged as female basketball players.
They started running as ONE. The passes got sharper, the energy got louder, and the team moved like they’d played together forever.
Some of the biggest growth happened off the court - in conversations, in practices, in the moments between games. Week by week, this team came together.
Teammates became friends. They celebrated the wins together, pushed each other to improve, and built a bond that went beyond basketball.
By championship day, the pre-game huddle looked a little different. They stood closer, with more focus and more belief in each other.
Championship day was the moment they’d worked all summer for, and they were ready for it, together.
Lady Apex Ba
