Girls take titles and learn a life lesson
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Pierce Huff - Times-Picayune
Two weeks ago the Academy of the Sacred Heart had one of the greatest weeks in the history of its athletic program.
The Cardinals volleyball team, led by senior hitter Suzanne Haydel, won its third consecutive Division III championship Nov. 11 in the state tournament at the Pontchartrain Center.
Three days later, Sacred Heart won its first-ever state cross country championship when it won the Class 3A title in the state cross country meet. Cardinals junior Meggie Schmidt won her second state championship in three years.
The next day Schmidt won two state swimming championships in the 200-yard individual medley and the 100-yard butterfly.
But the most impressive thing during Sacred Heart's championship week had nothing to do with anything on the field or in the pool.
When the Louisiana High School Athletic Association incorrectly named St. Louis as state champions because of a scoring error, saying St. Louis had 55 points and Sacred Heart had 65 points, Sacred Heart cross country coach Greg Caro could have reacted negatively. Some of the coaches at the meet even told Caro he should have been stomping, screaming and even cursing because of the obvious scoring error.
But instead of doing any of those things, Caro calmly reacted with class and handled the situation perfectly. He had Sacred Heart accept the second-place trophy at the end of the meet and even shake hands with the St. Louis team when the LHSAA mistakenly gave them the first-place trophy.
Then, Caro talked to LHSAA officials and demanded a recheck of the score. When the LHSAA realized its error of not crediting Schmidt for winning the individual title, the association made St. Louis and Sacred Heart exchange trophies.
But instead gloating and having a noisy celebration, Caro and his players quietly shook hands with the dejected St. Louis players and offered their consolation.
What Caro did was a series of simple gestures, but it was a rare thing in this day of everything being over the top, players being more concerned about themselves instead of their team and schools losing their cool in victory and defeat.
In one 10-minute span in north Louisiana, Caro taught Sacred Heart athletes how to be gracious in victory and defeat. He showed them you can speak your piece and have your words be heard in tough and trying times without raising your voice.
Caro even showed his runners that every time you participate in high school sports there are some things more valuable than a victory or a loss at stake: your reputation, your family's reputation and your school's reputation, because those are the things you represent every time you compete.
Ever the low-key guy, Caro said he was just doing his job. Coaching is something he and his wife, Jenny, have been doing for years, and they appreciate every minute of it. They love leading the girls at Sacred Heart.
But now more than ever it's apparent that Sacred Heart is lucky to have a coach like Caro.
The final corrected team standings in the state cross country meet read Sacred Heart with 50 points and St. Louis with 64 points.
But in the end Caro taught his athletes how to achieve something much more valuable than the score or the state championship trophy.
Caro taught Sacred Heart how to score points in the game of life.
Pierce W. Huff can be reached at phuff@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3809.
