Fallen girl's courage had huge effect on Neitzel

EAST LANSING - Just like every other Saturday in the fall, 11-year-old Natalie Freiburger of Charlotte was playing soccer with her youth team.

Two days later, she was diagnosed with what her mother described as "a rare and aggressive form of ovarian cancer."

That was in October. On Jan. 5, after surgeries and treatments that could not fix the problem, Natalie passed away. She was buried in her soccer uniform.

And she left behind some people with a new perspective on courage. One of them was Michigan State senior basketball player Drew Neitzel, who became close with Natalie in her final months.

"Live every day like it's your last," Neitzel said of what he took from Natalie's tragic and inspiring ordeal. "She's a little girl playing soccer ... and 2 1/2, three months later, she passes away."

Neitzel will play his final home game today, when MSU takes on Indiana. He'll do it in shoes with "Nat" written on them, along with portions of two Biblical verses that he has dedicated to Natalie.

Since he came to MSU from Grand Rapids in 2004, Neitzel has been active in the community. He has posed for countless pictures, signed a lot of basketballs for a lot of kids.

"The impact he's had, on people I didn't even know about, has been second to none of any of the players I've ever coached here," MSU coach Tom Izzo said.

This one was special. A family friend of the Freiburgers contacted MSU about Natalie's situation in the fall.

On Dec. 2, Neitzel, Izzo and four MSU football players - Javon Ringer, Otis Wiley, Ross Weaver and A.J. Jimmerson - showed up at a benefit breakfast for Natalie at St. Mary's Church in Charlotte.

Natalie, an MSU fan, was thrilled. She was especially excited to meet Neitzel, who had already been posting messages of encouragement on her Internet "care page" through DeVos Children's Hospital in Grand Rapids.

Natalie was such a Neitzel fan, that after she was diagnosed - and got her head shaved - she had a picture taken of herself to emulate a picture of Neitzel pumping his fists in an MSU win over Wisconsin last season.

The pictures hung side by side, on the door of her hospital room.

Neitzel and Natalie began communicating frequently on the Web page and via e-mail. He visited her on Christmas Eve, gave her a hat and a Sparty doll, let her wear his letter jacket.

She told him she had one concern - how her parents would be able to cope with her death. That struck Neitzel, as it had her parents.

"One night, her father was crying on the end of her bed and she said, 'It's OK, Dad, I'm going to be all right,' " Kim Freiburger recalled. "I said, 'Oh my God, we're supposed to be the ones comforting her.' ... She never wavered in her faith."

Less than two weeks after Neitzel's final visit, Natalie passed away. Neitzel, Ringer, Wiley, Weaver and Jimmerson attended her funeral showing on Jan. 9.

"They cried, and you know, people cry at a funeral, especially for a child," Kim said. "But it was very touching."

The Freiburgers want it known how appreciative they are for the time and compassion the MSU athletes gave to Natalie. MSU invited the Freiburgers to last week's game against Penn State, and afterward Neitzel gave his shoes to Natalie's 9-year-old brother, Noah.

"Drew has been incredible," Kim said. "And he made a huge difference in Natalie's final days."

The appreciation, Neitzel said, is mutual.

"She was an awesome kid," he said. "She really touched me."