Sabrina Lozada-Cabbage was born in Twin Falls, Idaho on January 3rd, 1997 to Roddy Cabbage and Emma Lozada. Roddy and Emma met at Gallaudet University and now both currently work at the New Mexico School for the Deaf. Sabrina is the middle child of three. Her oldest brother, Henry, and youngest brother, Bailey, are also hearing. Growing up, the siblings were heavily involved in the deaf community with an emphasis on using ASL at home. In an interview with the New Haven Register, Sabrina recalled,
“It was my first language. I started when I was 6 months old, communicating with my parents. My older brother, he’s hearing but my parents said you need to sign to me and my younger brother.” She went on to discuss her experience growing up, stating, “We basically were raised in the deaf community and have a lot of deaf friends in Idaho. Both of my parents are teachers at the deaf schools in Idaho and in New Mexico so we’re always there for their events, basketball games, volleyball games, football games, or whatever they had going on.”
Sports have always played a big role in the Lozada-Cabbage family. At Gallaudet, Roddy played both soccer and football and then went on to be part of the bronze-medal U.S. Handball Team for the 1989 Deaflympics. According to the Elliott School of Communication at Wichita State University, Sabrina began playing basketball in sixth grade and never looked back. As a freshman at Santa Fe High she immediately started on varsity. As a sophomore, the team went to the Class 4A semifinals, and as a junior, her team won the state championship and she earned First-Team All-State. Unfortunately, in the offseason between her junior and senior year, she injured her knee which caused her to miss her senior year. Thankfully Wichita State University honored its commitment to her despite her injury and she enrolled in the fall of 2015. Over the course of her four-year career at WSU, she played in 104 games, starting in over half of them. She averaged 6.2 points and 4.5 rebounds, improving every year. Her impact at WSU was not just felt on the court though, it was felt throughout the campus. As a freshman, she helped to facilitate a deaf awareness night at one of the basketball games, an event that has since continued.
Upon graduating with a sports management degree, Portugal’s Vitória Sport Clube signed her to a pro contract. During that season, Sabrina led the team in scoring until she sprained her ankle. Her success on the court led to her being asked to join the Puerto Rican national team. She was able to join the team because her grandparents were born and still reside in Puerto Rico. “They called me and I flew out, we played in Canada, so I don’t know how they found me or how they found out that I was Puerto Rican, but they did, and I’m glad they made the call, and I’m happy I took the opportunity,” said Lozada-Cabbage in an interview with KOB4, a New Mexican news station. Sabrina contributed to Puerto Rico’s run in the 2021 Olympics. While the team did not have the success that they set out for, Sabrina discussed the experience in an interview for the Santa Fe New Mexican, “This is amazing because it’s every athlete’s dream. And not just basketball, but any other sport. The Olympics are the biggest stage in the world.”
Moving forward Sabrina would like to continue her basketball career but once that is finished she would like to work with kids. “One of my dreams one day is to open a recreation center for children who want to be active and play sports, and I would also love to offer American Sign Language (ASL) classes for children and the general public so that in this way, it can help close the gap between deaf and hearing people so that everyone feels included,” she mentioned in an interview with El Volcero. Looking back on her life thus far, Sabrina stated to KOB4, “I’m not, you know, afraid to represent and say that I’m from New Mexico, I’m from Santa Fe, or that I am Puerto Rican and, you know, to represent my family. My parents are deaf so of course, I grew up a little differently than everybody else, so just being proud of everything that I am and everything that I stand for.” For more information about her Olympic experience check out her interview with the Daily Moth or check her out on Facebook or Instagram.