Perth Amboy resident Yadielis Gonzales (center) and her sister Jossie joined the Rutgers Scarlet Knight mascot on the court at the recent game between Rutgers’ womens’ basketball team and the Iowa Hawkeyes. (Photos by Rutgers Athletics.)

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ – As the Rutgers women’s basketball team fell to the Iowa Hawkeyes and star guard Caitlin Clark in front of a sold out crowd at Jersey Mike’s Arena on January 5, 2024, Yadielis Gonzalez (Perth Amboy, NJ), a member of the Perth Amboy High School girls’ basketball team, was honored as the Shining Knight of The Game .

A collaboration between Rutgers Athletics and Official Healthcare provider, RWJBarnabas Health, the Shining Knight of The Game is a meaningful initiative designed to lift the spirits and shine the spotlight on a patient battling healthcare challenges.

On March 7, 2023, the 17-year-old was diagnosed with ependymoma, a cancerous tumor in her brain that wrapped around her spinal-cord. The diagnosis required an emergency surgery at the Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, an RWJBarnabas Health facility.

Yadielis met women’s basketball head coach, Coquese Washington (left), in the team’s practice gym at the RWJBarnabas Health Athletic Performance Center.

Yadielis then received radiation treatment for the next two months at the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Jersey’s only NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center.

With the help of the incredible medical team at RWJBarnabas Health, Rutgers Cancer Institute, and her family, Yadielis has been able to embark on the road to recovery, allowing her to get back on the basketball court.

Following her arrival on Rutgers campus, Yadielis was treated with an opportunity to meet women’s basketball head coach, Coquese Washington, in the team’s practice gym at the RWJBarnabas Health Athletic Performance Center. She also enjoyed the opportunity to stand with the players during the performance of the national anthem.

To culminate the Game Day celebration, Yadielis was joined on the court by her sister Jossie and the Rutgers Scarlet Knight Mascot. Her brother Yalianis, stepdad Ismael, Uncle Lewis and her mom, Dee, were in the crowd as Yadielis raised her sword in triumph as she was saluted for her bravery and strength to fight.

Yadielis and each Shining Knight of the Game honoree will be enshrined in a Rutgers Athletics facility highlighting their unique game-day experience.