James had played CYO basketball for St. Joseph since he was in second grade. From his 8th grade team, there was only one other player who was with him when he started -- Jason, the big man, who played center.
As part of school tradition, all 8th grade players wore a shirt and neck tie during the ceremony. It sort of gave these boys a distinction of being the most senior players in school, and, was, in a way, acknowledging that they were leaving the sports program and moving on to high school next year.
This team was the last to be called to present, and Coach Frank took all the time he needed to tell the story of how this team was created and its journey throughout the season. He recognized each player for their achievements and highlighted interesting information, which gave the audience a good picture of the talent and skill standing before them. All the boys received a personalized trophy for placing first in the league (Mission Valley), and a small plaque for their participation in CYO basketball all these years.
At one part of the ceremony, I presented the championship trophy the team received for winning the St. Bede Christmas tournament in December to Mark, who happens to be the basketball coordinator for St. Joseph CYO, and emcee of the evening.
Coach Frank also thanked the people that volunteered and helped make the season a pleasantly successful one. I was a little surprised when he first acknowledged me for my contributions to the CYO program of the school, as coach, since my son was in 2nd grade, and, more recently, as team parent. He also thanked his two assistant coaches, Paul and Rhyan (who was not present) for sharing their time with the team.
To the boys -- Coby, James, Devin, Andrew, Nick, Justin, Vik, Tanish, Jay, and Jason -- congratulations for a successful season and good luck in high school. And for Coaches Frank, Paul, and Rhyan, thank you for volunteering and sharing your time with these kids. More power.
Go Cougars!
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