Former GWU basketball player escapes Ukraine: 'I'm just happy to be home'
A former George Washington University basketball player has escaped Ukraine after being stranded in the war-torn European country for days.
Maurice "Mo" Creek, an Oxon Hill, Maryland native, was stuck in Ukraine as Russia began to invade the country on Thursday. The 31-year-old played for GWU and Indiana University in college and now plays professional basketball for MBC Mykolaiv in the Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague.
He arrived at Dulles International Airport in Virginia Thursday afternoon. Creek hugged his mom affectionately and told FOX 5's Katie Barlow, "It feels great to be home."
"I got my family here. I'm just happy right now," Creek said. "It was a long journey but it was worth it. Every piece of the puzzle was a big step. I'm just happy to be home … I can't thank everybody enough."
His mom tells FOX 5 DC that Creek was able to cross the border into Moldova on Monday with the family of an assistant coach from his MBC Mykolaiv team.
Creek's parents say they kept in touch with their son for days while he was going through the ordeal. They even created shifts at home in order to stay awake in case news, a call, or a text message came from him.
His mother says one tough moment came a couple of days ago when Creek had to stay in a bomb shelter. "He sent us a video of the inside of the bomb shelter end it was just … You could see the chill in the air. It was just so eerie. It was awful."
On Sunday, Creek spoke to Fox News about his experience trying to return home.
"Every day I'm on the phone with my agent, trying to get out of here as soon as possible," Creek said. "Hopefully, I can get to one of these borders and get out of here."
"I've been hearing the bombs at night, the shooting at night, and it's terrifying for me to hear that," he added. "My family is on the phone, worried sick. My coaching staff with me right now is worried sick. I'm worried. It's just bad right now."
Creek posted about his situation via Twitter on Sunday, writing "NEVER FELT SO HOPELESS IN MY LIFE."
On Monday, he sent an update that reads, "TOOK ME 12 HOURS BUT FINALLY OUT OF UKRAINE … NEXT STOP BACK TO ROMANIA"
Creek's parents are breathing a major sigh of relief now that their son is out of harm's way.
"I can't even find the words to tell people how hard this has been when you're watching something like this on TV and you just cannot as a mother, reach out and get your child," Creek's mom told FOX 5 DC. "I tell my boys all the time I don't care how old you are, you're still my boys, still my babies. It just was extremely difficult."
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