True sportsmen savor victory but share the pain

Happy and humble - A true sportsman savors the victory, and feels the pain and disappointment of the athlete and team tagged with a defeat. Handling defeat with class is the bigger lesson learned; winning is always easier. Coaches like to talk about life lessons, the old on- and off-the-field example, which is true to the extent that life is a game. This is all very tricky stuff, but I have always said the athlete who truly believes in sportsmanship can never lose on game day. There is always a positive place to start and end; you are there blessed to run another day. See a sportsmanship photo of Amaya Daisey of Beacon and Reagan Ciabattoni of Mariner after a close finish in the 400 meters. The athletes were separated by four-tenths of a second.

Luke Maye - Luke, a 6-foot-8 sophomore and University of North Carolina walk-on, hit the winning shot over Kentucky to send the Tar Heels to the Final Four. That much we all know. But the fact that he played baseball in high school as a 6-foot-8 first baseman and was a member of the National Honor Society, French Honor Society and Math Honor Society got no play after the game. His dad Mark was the starting quarterback for UNC from 1984-87. He led the ACC is passing in 1986 with 1,400 yards. Generally, smart people with pedigree deliver in the clutch; it’s in the DNA. 

Isaac Humphries - Kentucky brings a 7-foot Australian off the bench - “I come from a land down under, you better run, you better take cover” - and he is money, putting the Cats in position to win the game. I’m like, “Who the heck is this guy? I want to know more.” As a freshman, Isaac was SEC first-team academic honor roll. His personal biography only mentions his mom Michaela who he says has been the greatest influence in his life. Isaac said if he didn’t play basketball he would be in the performing arts. Isaac scored 12 points in 21 minutes. He had played the previous 37 games without hitting double figures and had played 20 minutes just once all season. We see these kids, but do we really know them? Mostly we don’t, but the life lessons persist, “Play all the talent cards in the hand you were dealt.”

Good golly, a trolley - I’m an urban kind of guy living in a country setting, some may say part of the witless relocation program. Last Saturday at the new Temple Sports Complex located at Broad and Girard, the Owls defeated Marquette in overtime 17-16. I told my wife Susan, her first visit, how amazed I was Marquette brought so many fans. She pointed out, “Look at their roster. Their players are mostly East Coasters.” Anyway, I waited for my “money shot,” not the winning goal, but the trolley running behind the digital scoreboard, hopefully when Anna’s image was flashed after a goal. My parents Tom and Dot had a trolley romance - he was from 22nd and Lehigh while she was from 5th and Lehigh. And my Uncle Joe went to prison for some token scam involving the PTC, later to become Septa. Amazingly, Uncle Joe Kelly went on to be a custodian at a New Jersey high school and they named the gym after him. The lion sleeps tonight baby! (token joke book).

Snippets - The Franklin and Marshall women’s lacrosse team defeated Salisbury March 26 8-4, so why do we care? Because Meg Bartley is an assistant coach at F&M, and everyone on the Cape side of the street loves Draw Dogg. Eric Gooch was a credentialed photographer at the Temple lacrosse game March 25, and I caught a rare shot of him not wearing his hat, and also along with Taylor’s parents Beau and Dawn Gooch was Mary Sue Fazio, Dawn’s best friend, which is just one step removed from her dad Bill Lofland. Leslie Fazio is the starting soccer goalie for the Delaware State team, which played at Rutgers March 24. David Kwan is a sophomore designated hitter and first baseman at Williams College. Rylee Shockley, a senior at Sussex Tech, recently signed to play softball with Division II Lebanon Valley College. Rylee plays either corner of the infield, third or first. There are 300 NCAA Division II schools in the U.S., and they do give athletic scholarships, there are just less of them. The Dutchman are 13-3 this season and play in the Middle Atlantic Conference. Expect more weird weather this week. Go on now, git!