Who Were the Crusaders?

The mascot for St. Columbkille Athletics as well as St. Columbkille Catholic School is the Crusaders.

But who were the crusaders? Why in the world would we want to emulate crusaders? Fr. Kevin Vogel takes up those questions as we can separate the facts of the crusades from the fiction.

Go Crusaders!

What Basketball Should Be

Post-season basketball is aptly named March Madness, a time of intense tournament play, when players, coaches and fans go all out.

Lots could go wrong in all the intensity: bad sportsmanship, bad role modeling, injuries.

But a lot of good can come out of the competition, and I saw that at a recent March Madness tournament hosted by St. Bernadette Parish.

St. Columbkille teams seemed to give it their all, with some winning championships. But even more impressively, I saw St. Columbkille parishioners supporting each other as players and their families dropped in on games being played by other St. Columbkille teams. The kids were especially boisterous, creating their own cheering section near a St. Columbkille team bench, chanting and spurring on the players.

Last year, a couple of referees had spats with fans or coaches. But I didn’t see anything like that this year. In fact, I saw well-officiated games, and from at least one referee, some gentle encouragement and instruction for young players.

While officiating a fourth-grade boys game, a referee named John helped players find their spots as they lined up for a free throw and nudged them to the sideline when one of the teams called a timeout.

During the timeout, he noticed my son Paul, a uniformed fifth-grade player watching from the sidelines and approached him to give some tips on the game.

The referee asked my son, “You don’t play with alligator arms, do you?” He explained that alligators have short arms that don’t work well for basketball. He told Paul he should have spider arms instead, long and extended. And John showed him how to position his arms to effectively block shots and passes. And the referee told Paul where to keep his eyes, too: on an opposing player’s belly button, not on his head.

The time out ended, but John kept returning during game breaks to teach Paul and let him know what he should be practicing during the off-season, including this tip: Don’t practice 3-pointers, work on free throws first and then move around for other shots inside the 3-point line.

During the game, John occasionally would look over at Paul when a player did something that reinforced his teaching. If the ref was close enough, he’d ask Paul if he saw how that basket was made, how the player positioned his arms for the shot.

The game was a lopsided win for St. Columbkille’s fourth-grade team, so there wasn’t much pressure on John as he refereed. He used the opportunity to teach, encourage and make friends, including some St. Columbkille sixth-grade boys when they stopped by to watch.

John the referee reminded me of what youth basketball should be – competition, instruction, fun.

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.

Geography Bee Sportsmanship

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lamp stand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.” – Matthew 5:14-16

A bit of well-placed sportsmanship made my day Wednesday at St. Columbkille School’s geography bee – and set a great example for hundreds of kids who were watching in the gym.

A field of 10 competitors had been narrowed down to two, fifth-graders Brendan Preisman and Daniel Schraeder. The match was close but ended with Daniel as the winner.

Brendan, the geography bee’s defending champion, must have wanted to win badly. He studied hard, apparently without a lot of prompting from his parents, and he knew his stuff.

But at the moment Daniel was announced the winner, Brendan set aside any disappointment or frustration he might have felt and walked over to Daniel to give him a handshake and a hug. Brendan knew what it was like to win, and he was gracious in congratulating Daniel in his moment of victory.

Brendan’s parents, David and Kristi Preisman, might be a little sad about the loss – but they must be very proud, too. Brendan competed well. But more importantly, he was kind and gracious.

Academic success is nice and usually is the product of hard work. So both boys – and all the competitors – should be congratulated. Intelligence is a gift from God, and we must be good stewards of His gifts. But ultimately, it’s our hearts that matter, that make the biggest impact on our world, and the place where Jesus shines through.

So congratulations to all who competed in the geography bee, especially Daniel.

And thank you, Brendan, for showing us how to let Christ shine.

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.

March Madness

There's a reason end-of-season basketball is called March Madness.

Even at grade-school level, games can get crazy.

A tournament St. Columbkille teams competed in last weekend exemplified some of the best and worst of that.

Many games went into overtime and double overtime, bringing out the best and worst in players, coaches, fans and referees. Most of it was good: good competition, effort and enthusiasm. But there were bad moments too. A coach and referee got into a brawl, parents criticized referees, referees became confrontational, coaches yelled at kids, etc.

But beyond all that, there were some exceptional moments of athletic competition. Two incidents in particular transcended sports and made me proud to be Catholic and part of a faith-filled community like St. Columbkille. Both involved our fourth-grade boys teams.

The first:

The two fourth-grade teams had to compete against each other in their third game of the tournament. As a parent, I kind of dreaded that match up, fearing the game might become too competitive, pitting friends and classmates against each other. I was running late for the game, but on the way there I prayed that, win or lose for my son, good sportsmanship, friendship and camaraderie would prevail.

My prayer was answered in a big way. Before I got there, players and coaches from both teams joined together for prayer, a Hail Mary while holding hands in a circle. Blue and white jerseys intermingled in the circle. The opposing coach held my son's hand.

The game was intense, bringing out the best in the boys. The victory was by one point, in double overtime. But that last point was amazing.

Lane McMillan was fouled with about 10 seconds to go. He knew one free throw shot would break the tie and probably seal the game. He ran to the free throw line before other players got in position, dropped to his knees, made the sign of the cross and pointed up. Then he readied himself, and swished the ball through the net.

His moment of faith was witnessed by a packed gym, including teams and fans waiting for the next game.

Both teams gathered after the game for photos of all the fourth-graders together. Coaches had stressed good sportsmanship, and the boys seemed to have no problem with that, playing and joking around like normal. So much for my worries.

The second incident:

My son's team, the winner of the St. Columbkille vs. St. Columbkille game, advanced to more competition, but eventually they lost, placing third overall. But even the loss ended up pretty sweet. The St. Columbkille team was being beaten handily; in the final moments of the game knew they couldn't avoid the final outcome. But one thing was left unfinished for the team: one player hadn't had many opportunities to score. So the coach and players made sure he got the ball as the game wound down.

He got an open look -- and sank the ball into the net. Everyone cheered. It was a bright ending to an otherwise dismal loss.

Sports can be crazy, but they give people a chance to shine. Sometimes that happens in the most pleasing, unexpected and faith-filled ways.

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.

Intramural Basketball

Intramural Basketball has begun.

Here students start to learn the fundamentals.

In a few years, they may really enjoy watching this:

5th Grade Sportsmanship

Because of the number of interested 5th graders, two basketball teams were formed. Now, in tournament time, the teams are showing up for each other's games and cheering. Many people come to the gym to witness this through word of mouth or by the volume of the cheering! Even the refs have commented on what a great bunch of kids they are! Tonight the teams play each other. Regardless of the outcome, they have already demonstrated they are all winners and an example to the rest of us.