Sophie's Story Part 2: Farm Strong and Family Waves
1/2/2019 5:35:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Part 1 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5
On a cool October evening in Williamsburg, Missouri, a hunter's moon hovers on the horizon. In the distance, a combine treks across the field, making one more turn before darkness takes over. This is farm country, and Paul Primus' tract is alive with activity. It's harvest time, and he and his son, Jon, need to get the crop in before company arrives.
Meanwhile, a black Jeep Wrangler Rubicon comes roaring down State Road A. Two sisters sit in the front seats. It's a ride Sophie and Lindsey Cunningham have made many times before. They are on their way to visit their maternal grandparents.
"This is how we were raised," said 24-year old Lindsey. "Our Maw Maw and Paw Paw and this farm are a big part of our lives."
Once parked, the younger sister, Sophie, unfolds from her seat, and slowly staggers forward. The soreness in her legs sting with every step.
"What's wrong, little lady," asks Paul as he greets his granddaughters with a hug.
"Rough practice, Paw Paw. Coach ran us hard," Sophie said.
"Were you misbehavin' again?" Paul said. "What did you do this time?"
***
It's clear this 75-year-old farmer knows these girls all too well. In his mind, a coach wouldn't work a team extra hard unless the players deserved it. He's heard this song before, when his own two daughters played sports. Paula and Stacey Primus were three-sport standouts at North Callaway High School and both went on to compete at the University of Missouri. Lindsey and Sophie's mother, Paula, was a member of the Tigers track team, while younger sister Stacey played for Joann Rutherford's basketball squad.
"Both of our parents came from athletic families," Lindsey said. "Mom did softball, basketball and track. Our dad (Jim) played football in college. Growing up, we were always outside with them playing some type of sport."
That upbringing would lead to opportunities. Lindsey and Sophie received basketball scholarships to Missouri. Lindsey completed her college career in 2017. Sophie is in the midst of her senior season. The 22-year old is an All-SEC performer, an All-America candidate and the undisputed leader of this year's team.
Elizabeth Primus made sure her granddaughters developed a strong work ethic. She always found something productive for them to do. And when she couldn't, she created a chore.
"Mom would have those girls raking leaves," Paula said. "If they finished too quickly, she would drive them up the road, let them out, and follow them back to the house while they picked up trash. She said it was good for them."
Paul and Elizabeth Primus always had horses, and the Cunninghams learned to ride at an early age.
"We used to ride bareback all the time," said Lindsey. "Most people don't realize how difficult it is to keep your balance when you ride without a saddle. We got it down pat."
"I believe that actually has helped us on the court," Sophie said. "We are always shifting our weight when we jump and land, so keeping your balance is so important."
Well before they were 16, Sophie and Lindsey also learned to drive on this land, in Paul's truck and the family four-wheeler.
"Sophie and I used to take the four-wheeler up to the grain silos and pretend they were drive thrus," Lindsey said. "Each silo represented a different restaurant. We had a lot of imagination."
***
and Paul Primus, Lindsey, Jim, Sophie
Missouri basketball has been a focal point of this crew of relatives since the 1980s when Stacey donned the black and gold. Today, any Tiger home game finds family members stretched across Mizzou Arena. Oddly, they don't sit together.
"We all need our space," Paula said. "And nobody wants to sit by Mom."
There is a common characteristic among the females in this family. They are all fiery competitors, and it started with the grandmother. Known as "Sissy" to her friends and "Maw Maw" to her grandchildren, Elizabeth is a feisty gray-haired woman in her mid-70s with a sly, contagious smile. She sits in Section 105 with a scorebook in her lap, peering through her glasses and charting every key stat. She's too impatient to wait on the official scorer, so she keeps her own. Seldom is she silent. Without prompting, she voices her opinion and advice to her granddaughter Sophie.
"C'mon, baby girl. Suck it up, Sophie," she yells as Sophie lands awkwardly and begins to limp down the court. "Be tough. Stay in there, Sophie."
Back on defense, her granddaughter gets overly aggressive.
"Oh, lordy, don't foul, baby girl," Grandma Primus yells.
Sophie gets whistled for the infraction.
"Ughhh, Sophie," she says, lowering her head.
"I hear everything she says. How can you not? Her voice carries across the arena," Sophie said.
Midway through the first quarter in a game against UMKC, the 6-foot-1 sharpshooting Sophie drains a 3-pointer.
"Woof, woof, woof," Sissy barks as she stands and cups her hands around her mouth. "That a way, baby girl. Keep shooting."
Five rows back in the same section, Paul Primus just smiles.
***
Stacey (Primus Hoffman) and Lindsey
The family's competitive intensity is always in plain sight, but there is kindness underneath. As a freshman who arrived at MU from Florida, Hannah Schuchts was Sophie's roommate.
"I didn't know anyone when I got to Columbia, and the Cunninghams just took me in," said Schuchts, now a junior forward. "They are incredibly gracious and so close. I just love them."
If there was a symbol to express how close these family members really are, look no further than the right wrists of Paula, Lindsey, Sophie, Stacey and Jon Primus. They each have a tattoo of three waves.
"Three waves can equal three words," Sophie said. "When we are in church and are holding hands, we squeeze three times to represent, 'I love you.' "
Lindsey said the tattoo also represents a Bible verse, Isaiah 43:2, "Through deep waters, I'll be with you.' "
The ink is a visible sign of a family connection that goes much deeper, with roots in the Missouri soil.
"So much of our success goes back to what we learned here," Sophie said. "We loved coming out to the farm to help. We found out how to work hard and work together. It made us farm strong."
