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C-M grad, athlete Blanock dies at 19

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After a year of fighting Ewing’s sarcoma, Luke Blanock returned to play in December 2014 with the Canon-McMillan basketball team. Blanock started in the win over Burgettstown.

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Luke Blanock

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Natalie and Luke Blanock on their wedding day, February 19

Luke Blanock, a multisport athlete at Canon-McMillan High School whose courage and poise in fighting cancer inspired so many others, died Sunday at the age of 19.

Blanock was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma – a rare cancer that forms in the bone marrow and soft tissues – in December 2013. His diagnosis became known throughout the community and sparked an outpouring of support. Blanock spoke at numerous events, including the Tri-County Athletic Directors’ Association Coach of the Year Banquet in April, where he received the Sports Headliner award.

As a young guy, he handled the possibility of death better than a lot adults I know handle life,” said Rick Bell, Blanock’s basketball coach at Canon-McMillan. “He told me before Christmas, ‘Coach, I’m not afraid.’ I thought, ‘Wow, this kid has more strength in his little finger than I have in my whole body.’ He has been an inspiration to so many people that he doesn’t even know about. In my travels, people who knew him would ask, ‘How is Luke?’ and those who didn’t know him would ask, ‘How is that kid who plays for you?’ That says so much.”

A year after he was told his athletic career was over, he started and scored his first varsity points in Canon-McMillan basketball’s win over Burgettstown.

On March 17, 2015, just weeks before the WPIAL baseball season was set to begin, doctors discovered a tumor in Blanock’s left femur. The cancer returned, but that wasn’t going to stop Blanock from pitching.

During four games in Myrtle Beach, S.C., Blanock went 3-for-9 at the plate with an RBI, he threw out three runners from left field and made a diving catch. Against Moore Catholic (N.Y.), Blanock started and pitched 4 1/3 innings with four strikeouts.

“He was the absolute best, a warrior from the onset,” said Frank Zebrasky, who coached Blanock in baseball at Canon-McMillan. “He looked at things right in the eye and attacked them. That’s what he’s done. He took this as another battle.”

Results in late November showed the cancer spread to multiple spots on his spine, pelvis, lungs, lymph nodes, arm and right leg. A month later, his white blood cell counts were so low doctors feared further treatment would be a risk. Tumors formed in Blanock’s jaw, preventing him from talking, eating or even swallowing a pill for days. His weight dropped to 130 pounds – almost 50 pounds lighter than his weight before last year’s baseball season.

“To this day, he inspires me,” Bell said. “I have my #LukeStrong bracelet on my wrist. When I went to see him in December, he said he wanted me to take it off because he never wanted to be known as that kid with cancer. I told him I had taken it off. Whenever I was having a bad day, I would start feeling sorry for myself, so I said, ‘I’m never taking this off. It’s not directly for you. It’s for me.'”

Funeral arrangements have not been completed.

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