With three games under their belt, basketball head coach Ed Capodanno saw his team turn a corner.

Those three contests, Team Delaware came up short. But toward the end of the third, he saw a change. The players were getting back to following the season-long team motto.

“Trust your teammates, trust the system,” as Capodanno puts it.

A renewed focus on this mantra and an aggressive style of play helped Special Olympics Delaware’s basketball team claim the gold medal in Division D of the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games, which were held in Orlando, Florida, from June 5 to June 10.

After three tough days in round-robin play, Capodanno’s squad had a chance to redeem themselves in division play that would determine the final medal results. The team rebounded from three consecutive losses by taking down New Hampshire in the semifinals by a 33-point margin.

Point guard Jayquan Butcher, from Dover, credited his coach with the necessary motivation and belief to fuel the team’s resurgence.

“Coach just believed in us,” said Butcher. “We had our heads down because of the beginning games. He didn’t let us fall into a slump or fall through the cracks, he kept us in good spirits.”

When Friday’s gold medal match tipped off, Butcher, who played at Dover High School, adjusted to play more aggressively with less of a pass-first mentality.

“He told me to be aggressive, because sometimes I start drifting off into space,” said Butcher of the advice he received from his coach.

“We basically told him to stop thinking and just play basketball,” said Capodanno. “Thursday and Friday, that’s exactly what he did. He was absolutely spectacular on Friday.”

Butcher and his teammates secured a convincing 52-21 victory over Arkansas to win the gold on the biggest of stages, at the AdventHealth Arena at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.

Capodanno mentioned that while it took some time for the team to adjust to the atmosphere and venue away from home, he was overjoyed with how they responded to a rocky start.

“They got knocked around a little bit on the first days, but they rebounded, and they came back and won the whole thing,” said Capodanno. “It’s tremendous character on the players’ part to do that.”

For Team Delaware, success came from many more places than just the hardwood. The bocce, bowling and track and field teams all brought home bronze in team events, and each sport had at least one athlete win an individual gold medal. Meanwhile, the swimming team won gold in the freestyle relay by a margin of less than a second.

Over at the UTSA National Campus in Orlando, Delaware’s tennis athletes worked through extreme heat and a jam-packed schedule to attain similar glory.

Katya Bowers, of Millville, and Carl Williams, of Newark, won gold in the tennis doubles, taking down Iowa on the final day. For tennis athletes like Bowers and Williams, that competed in both singles and doubles play, timed matches were held every day due to the temperatures.

“It was hard to stay hydrated and recover each day,” said tennis coach Jill Wallace. “It also caused delays making for long days at the tennis center. But it was all worth it.”

Bowers, who also won silver in singles play, said she had to work on her forehand technique some during the Games, especially being at the advanced Level 5.

Williams, who played singles at Level 4 and earned a bronze medal, had to play at Level 5 in the doubles matches since the match level was determined by the team’s higher-level player.

“This was challenging for him as the weight and speed of the ball is different, which cuts down his reaction time,” said Wallace. “Carl was able to overcome that challenge, compete well, and they won the gold.”

By the time the gold medal match came around, both Bowers and Williams had time to make their adjustments to outside factors, including the venue, heat and one another. Even in the final match alone, the pair overcame adversity to clinch the victory.

“We didn’t do very well in the middle of the game,” said Bowers. “And Jill was like, ‘you guys need to step it up.’”

“We did step up and we worked together. I helped him and he helped me.”

Wallace, in her sixth season coaching Special Olympics, not only commended the athletes for their play on the court, but emphasized the bonds and friendships made off the court.

“We traveled to Maryland for a scrimmage with Team Maryland a month before the games,” said Wallace. “It was great preparation and we had instant friends when we arrived in Orlando.”

Perhaps the most lasting and impactful, though, will be between coach and athlete.

“The three of us will always have a special bond from this experience,” said Wallace.

For more on Special Olympics Delaware, visit sode.org.