DARLINGTON — On any given night, the Golackson family could be found at the municipal building or Sieg Field practicing — the oldest sibling Chad, sisters Chelsie, Cori and Cayla, mother Debbie and father Willie. 

“That’s how we really bonded,” now-2023 senior Cayla said. “He wanted to push us and have fun. He wanted to see me succeed and was always there.”

Willie was so dedicated to his children and their athletic careers that he switched jobs to be closer for games. He coached all four kids through Rec and traveling leagues, teaching them the game that he grew up playing.

“He always wanted to be involved with the kids,” Debbie said. “He was an athlete himself. Everybody watched each other. He couldn’t wait to have kids to do sports with them.”

In 2013, Willie suffered an accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down. Although he could walk with a walker, he spent the rest of his life in a wheel chair. The setback didn’t curb Willie’s enthusiasm, though. He continued to be a big part of his kids’ athletic careers.

“We never missed anything,” Debbie said. “He was at UW, not being able to get out of his chair, asking his doctors if he could get a release to watch Chad play in Middleton. They never had anyone ask that before. He wouldn’t take no for an answer. We rented a wheelchair-accessible van to watch the game.”

The Golacksons’ on-the-go routine continued as normally as it could until the summer of 2015, when Willie passed away unexpectedly due to blood clots in his lungs.

Cayla, then entering fifth grade, took her father’s death especially hard. Her siblings Chad, Chelsi and Cori — then ages 18, 17 and 14 — spent most of their athletic careers with their father as the coach. Now, Cayla had to go through it alone.

“I didn’t tell anybody when I was younger,” Cayla said. “But, I was upset that my siblings got Dad longer than I did.”

Brad Solberg, the current girls basketball coach, was a source of comfort for the Golackson family. Brad was an assistant coach on the boys basketball team for five years when Chad played, and he had the rest of the Golackson siblings in school. After her father’s passing, Cayla knew Brad was someone she could rely on.

“Through everything — Dad passing, losing my boyfriend to cancer — Solberg has been there outside of basketball,” Cayla said. “He makes sure I’m okay. I’d go talk to him or he’d come talk to me if I needed help. He’s a bit young to say he’s a father figure, but it’s like that. He means a lot. It feels like he’s a part of the family.”

Although Cayla went through her high school athletic career with an important person missing in the stands and on the sideline, she had her family’s support. It took some time, but she realized that she still got her dad’s coaching through her siblings. 

“Now, I realize I had Chad, Chelsie and Cori. They learned from Dad, so everything I’m learning from them is from Dad,” Cayla said. “Solberg helped me progress even more in basketball and made me realize that, even though I wanted my Dad there helping me, I got advice from all my siblings.”

While Cayla noticed Willie in her sibling’s advice, Brad saw Willie in Cayla’s character — from her resiliency, coachability and determination.

“This comes from Willie. From day one, she’s been able to take coaching,” Brad said.  “We’ve had a good relationship because she’s always wanted to be pushed. She has perseverance — she’s had to learn there are harder things in life than missing a shot. She’s able to see the big picture. Good things happen more times than not if you keep moving forward. He probably lit that fire in her when she was really young. That fire has never burned out of her.”

Cayla used that drive to have a successful high school athletic career. She is a two-time First-Team All-Conference selection in basketball. Her junior year, she shot 70.1% from the free-throw line, making 54 of 77 chances. She led the team with 236 points and 161 rebounds. In the 2022-23 season, she scored 185 points with a team-best 147 rebounds. She finished with 573 career points and 414 career rebounds.

As Cayla, the youngest of the four Golackson siblings, graduates this spring, Brad looks back on her career with pride. Cayla has had to overcome more obstacles than a high school senior should, but she let those hardships inspire instead of injure her.

“Cayla has been through a lot. She continues to strive despite everything she goes through,” Brad said. “She’s a two-time First-Team All-Conference player, and it would have been easy to say, ‘I’m done with everything.’ She’s used it as motivation and fuel. I’m proud of where she’s at.”

Cayla graduates from Darlington high school this spring and will attend Western Technical College in La Crosse this fall. While her athletic career is up in the air, she plans on pursuing a career in oncology nursing.