As their parents and grandparents and siblings looked on, a group of 5th and 6th grade girls, once timd and passive and unsure of themselves, rallied from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to win, 30-29.
The girls's opponent this evening was the best team in the league, Middlebury Blue, which featues the best player in the league, a player who could easily being playing a level or two up. Blue had put a hurting on these girls in January by a score of 29-13.
After that game, their worst loss of the season, the Devil Ducks were 0-3. With their comeback, one they will remember for quite a long time, the girls are now 4-4. And the dreaded Blue team, and it's star player, are no longer intimidating and invincible.
Showing guts they had not before, the local girls pulled themselves up off the floor, sometimes literally, battered and hurting. Displaying a growing confidence that fully blossomed tonight, they played together, they played aggressively, and they played with desire.
When the Devil Ducks pulled within one point with a minute to go, they knew they could do it. For the first time all year, they sensed something big happening and they wanted it. They tied the score, and this group that shied away from yelling "WIN" to break team huddles in its previous seven games, asked to shout that word at the start of overtime.
As I looked in their eyes at that moment, I was more proud of them than of any other team that I've coached, no matter what was to happen. That 29-13 loss just about two months ago was so far gone. They were focused on the here and now.
Winning is not everything. But putting your heart into something and giving it your all is. So is getting up off the canvas when you're down and counted out. Special memories are made of those times.
Yes, tonight I was courtside and it was pure magic. Way to go, Ducks!
Thanks for the memory.
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3 comments:
Hi Ed!!
I really enjoyed your article and thought I would give it a deserving "Thumbs WAY Up!" I'm lucky enough to coach kids as well, so your story really resonated with me. It really is magical when kids make breakthroughs and reach new levels that once seemed impossible.
Hats off to You, Coach and your team!!
Bob B
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