I've always held a small spot in my heart for the unrecognized figures in sports. This weekend, that spot got a little bit larger.
When you write an article about a game, or even worse, about several games, space is always an issue. Each of The Post's sportswriters could write novels about each of their respective beats on any given day. Unfortunately, the bare details are often the only things that go to print.
Quotations need to be removed and extraneous details end up on the newsroom floor. Those quotations are often about the unrecognized figure, and the details are often about what he or she did. But if you don't put it in the hole, net or end zone, sorry, no ink.
For example, I've always felt apologetic for the oft-forgotten offensive lineman on a football team. They're easy to blame when the quarterback is slung around like a lasso, and even easier to forget when the tailback celebrates in the end zone after a 50-yard run.
Baseball players are also often slighted, specifically on the defensive end. Loose balls and extra passes are rarely recap material in basketball stories.
And another example was added to my case earlier this week at Pruitt Field.
Although I am very new to the sport, I can come to at least one conclusion about field hockey: one good player can most definitely make a difference, but she cannot win on her own.
At the end of the day, however, it's the goal scorers that get the ink. They are the tailback with the 50-yard gain.
Shots, goals and assists are about the only things that will get you noticed in a stat sheet at the end of the day. I am learning from this mistake.
After the Bobcats won their second game in as many days this weekend, I interviewed Ohio coach Shelly Morris. I asked about the value of Liz Holtzman, who scored all three of Ohio's goals in the weekend. The senior was fantastic in the pair of games, just like she has been all season long, but Morris eventually shifted the attention to another senior.
After commenting on Holtzman, Morris said, I don't think we would have won today if it wasn't for Amanda Freeman. I said that to my team when we got to the goal. She played incredible this weekend.
Amanda Freeman? Even I, the admitted field hockey novice, can tell that she's a great player. But my stat sheet, aside from one assist on the weekend, appeared empty in the Freeman category. I certainly didn't plan on making a huge deal about it.
Maybe I should have. Maybe it's players like Amanda Freeman that truly do win ball games and deserve more space on the sports page.
Morris continued about Freeman, We have to appreciate her more.
Me too coach. Me too.
Lasita is a sophomore journalism major. Send him an e-mail at
timothy.lasita@ohiou.edu.
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T.J. Lasita
