Complex sentence: Basketball was truly a blessing to Rushia after the death of her father where as a sophomore she first picked up a ball and joined the Summerville High School JV Basketball team.
Split into simpler sentences: Basketball was truly a blessing to Rushia after the death of her father. It was until then as a way to deal with the tragedy and as a sophomore in high school she first picked up a ball and joined the Summerville High School JV Basketball team.