Winner in 100-0 girls game wants forfeit

[Gingersnap]

Winner in 100-0 girls game wants forfeit

Associated Press
Jan. 22, 2009, 2:18PM

Tony Gutierrez AP

DALLAS — A Texas high school girls basketball team on the winning end of a 100-0 game has a case of blowout remorse.

Now officials from the winning school say they are trying to do the right thing by seeking a forfeit and apologizing for the margin of victory.

In a statement Thursday on The Covenant School's Web site, the head of school said, "It is shameful and an embarrassment that this happened.'' He went on to say that Covenant has made "a formal request to forfeit the game recognizing that a victory without honor is a great loss.''

Last week Covenant, a private Christian school in Dallas, defeated Dallas Academy 100-0. Covenant was up 59-0 at halftime.

A parent who attended the game told The Associated Press that Covenant continued to make 3-pointers - even in the fourth quarter. She praised the Covenant players but said spectators and an assistant coach were cheering wildly as their team edged closer to 100 points.

"I think the bad judgment was in the full-court press and the 3-point shots,'' said Renee Peloza, whose daughter plays for Dallas Academy. "At some point, they should have backed off.''

Dallas Academy coach Jeremy Civello told The Dallas Morning News that the game turned into a "layup drill,'' with the opposing team's guards waiting to steal the ball and drive to the basket. Covenant scored 12 points in the fourth quarter and "finally eased up when they got to 100 with about four minutes left,'' he said.

Dallas Academy has eight girls on its varsity team and about 20 girls in its high school. It is winless over the last four seasons. The academy boasts of its small class sizes and specializes in teaching students struggling with "learning differences,'' such as short attention spans or dyslexia.

This piece covers concepts that have broader implications than an ordinary Sports topic so I'm putting it up here.

Chron

[linda22003]

Apologizing for the margin of victory? Completely aside from the fact that this is a girls' team, that's pussy.

[noonwitch]

Maybe a school that specializes in educating girls with special needs doesn't need to be playing basketball games against a general school.

[linda22003]

Maybe a school that specializes in educating girls with special needs doesn't need to be playing basketball games against a general school.

The special needs are "short attention span" and "dyslexia". It's not like they whomped a girls' team playing from wheelchairs.

[Space Gravy]

The special needs are "short attention span" and "dyslexia". It's not like they whomped a girls' team playing from wheelchairs.

Maybe they thought they only lost 001 - 0?

[Gingersnap]

Maybe they thought they only lost 001 - 0?

Now that's funny! :D

[noonwitch]

The special needs are "short attention span" and "dyslexia". It's not like they whomped a girls' team playing from wheelchairs.

I'm reading between the lines, as someone who works with kids of all different need levels. Kids who are in a special school because they have a short attention span or dyslexia usually have other issues, too, or they would be able to maintain in a regular school setting. I don't mean wheelchairs, I mean emotional issues.

[Gingersnap]

I'm reading between the lines, as someone who works with kids of all different need levels. Kids who are in a special school because they have a short attention span or dyslexia usually have other issues, too, or they would be able to maintain in a regular school setting. I don't mean wheelchairs, I mean emotional issues.

I think your point is well taken, though. "Competition" kind of automatically involves sorting people out into different skill levels. The loser kids here probably shouldn't have been matched up against a team with normal competitive goals.

The Special Olympics are heart-warming and all but they aren't interesting in terms of athletic performance. Playing on a team may be fun for these kids but they shouldn't kid themselves that they are playing at the same level as the other kids. A four year losing streak is a pretty strong indication that you are doing it wrong.

However, there's no reason why the winning team should forfeit. The losers don't magically gain skills or drive from that and the winners take home mixed messages about what fair competition is all about.

[Bubba Dawg]

The special needs are "short attention span" and "dyslexia". It's not like they whomped a girls' team playing from wheelchairs.

That also describes the NBA. I mean, I'm just sayin'....

[Space Gravy]

I think that trend in youth sports where everyone gets a trophy and we don't keep score is silly. But how about a little common sense? If a lead gets up to 40 or 50 points in high school football or basketball let's call it a day.