Archive for July, 2020

The Class of the NCAA 7-5-2020

Sunday, July 5th, 2020

A few springs ago, Western Oregon State played Central
Washington University in women’s softball for the conference
championship. An NCAA playoff spot was on the line. With two on,
Western Oregon’s Sara Tucholsky connected to hit a home run clearing
the center field fence. It was Sara’s first home run ever. A part-time
starter in the outfield, Sara, a senior, had only 3 hits in 34 at-bats all
season.
But as she circled the bases, Sara fell and hurt her knee. The five-
foot-two-inch senior lay crumpled in the dirt a few feet from first base—
and a long way from home plate.
Her teammates ran to help her—but their coaches stopped them:
According to the rules, if any teammate ran on to the field, Sara would
be called out. The umpires said that if Sara could make it back to first
base, a pinch runner could be substituted—but Sara’s home run would be scored a single. Any assistance from coaches or trainers while Sara
was an active runner would result in an out.
While Western Oregon was deciding its next move, the first
baseman for Central Washington asked the umpire chief if she and her
teammates could help her. The umpire knew of no rule against the
opposing team helping the player—so two Central Washing players put
their arms under Sara’s legs and Sara put her arms around their
shoulders and the three headed around the base paths, stopping to let
Sara touch each base.
Central Washington’s compassion cost them. They lost the game
—and the playoff berth—4.2.
But that didn’t seem to faze Central Washington. “In the end, it’s
not about winning and losing so much”, Washington’s first baseman
Mallory Holtman said. “It was about this girl. She’s a senior; it’s her
last year. She hit it over the fence and was in pain, and she deserved a
home run. It was the right thing to do”.
This ultimate act of sportsmanship mirrors the generosity of spirit and humility of heart that Jesus asks of us in today’s Gospel. When Jesus calls his disciples to embrace the simple faith of “little ones”, he is not
saying that our approach to faith should be “watered down” to the level
of children. He is calling us, instead, to embrace a faith that is centered
in the love and compassion of God: love that is not compromised by
self-interest and rationalization, compassion that is not measured but
given completely and unreservedly. Christ is asking us to embrace a
faith that is simple, pure and honest—not complicated and compromised
by “adult stuff” like winning and losing. May the “wise and learned”
among us embrace the spirit of generosity and selflessness exhibited by
the Central Washing University women’s softball team—the class of the
NCAA.