Girls Basketball Team Regrets Winning 100-0, Seeks Forfeit

[Slydragon]

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.

There is no mercy rule in girls basketball that shortens the game or permits the clock to continue running when scores become lopsided. There is, however, "a golden rule" that should have applied in this contest, said Edd Burleson, the director of the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools. Both schools are members of this association, which oversees private school athletics in Texas.

"On a personal note, I told the coach of the losing team how much I admire their girls for continuing to compete against all odds," Burleson said. "They showed much more character than the coach that allowed that score to get out of hand. It's up to the coach to control the outcome."

Covenant coach Micah Grimes and head of school Kyle Queal did not immediately respond to messages left by The Associated Press on Thursday.

In the statement on the Covenant Web site, Queal said the game "does not reflect a Christ-like and honorable approach to competition. We humbly apologize for our actions and seek the forgiveness of Dallas Academy, TAPPS and our community."

Queal said school officials met with Dallas Academy officials to apologize and praised "each member of the Dallas Academy Varsity Girls Basketball team for their strength, composure and fortitude in a game in which they clearly emerged the winner." Civello said he appreciated the gesture and has accepted the apology "with no ill feelings."

At a shootaround Thursday, several Dallas Academy players said they were frustrated during the game but felt it was a learning opportunity. They also said they are excited about some of the attention they are receiving from the loss, including an invitation from Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban to see an NBA game from his suite.

"Even if you are losing, you might as well keep playing," said Shelby Hyatt, a freshman on the team. "Keep trying, and it's going to be OK."

Peloza said the coach and other parents praised the Dallas Academy girls afterward for limiting Covenant to 12 points in the fourth quarter. She added that neither her daughter nor her teammates seemed to dwell on the loss.

"Somewhere during that game they got caught up in the moment," Peloza said of the Covenant players, fans and coaches. "Our girls just moved on. That's the happy part of the story."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,481854,00.html

[Blake]

I guess if it was 50-0, they wouldnt need to say sorry

[SAhoops]

That's just ridiculous. Asking to forfeit the game later just adds insult to injury.

[Rip-Hamilton32]

how do you not score? were they all blind?

[Slydragon]

That's just ridiculous. Asking to forfeit the game later just adds insult to injury.

and on top of that getting invited to a Mavs game :nope

[SAhoops]

and on top of that getting invited to a Mavs game :nope

Exactly!

[2centsworth]

Not how Christians are supposed to act. Asking for a forfeit is also ridiculous. How about having the entire team raise money for that school by washing cars for a month.

[mogrovejo]

Not how Christians are supposed to act. Asking for a forfeit is also ridiculous. How about having the entire team raise money for that school by washing cars for a month.

You have to blame the Coach, not the girls.

No problem with the score; what's ridiculous was that they were running a full-court press during the entire game. Very poor demonstration of sportsmanship.

I agree, asking the forfeit just compounds the mistake.

[mogrovejo]

Discussed ad nauseam here:
http://spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=115024

[AlamoSpursFan]

Kyle Queal = Giant Pussy.

If he really felt bad, he'd fire the numbnuts (probably himself) who allowed his school to play an obviously outgunned team.

[MiamiHeat]

not ONE basket? really?

not even ONE? in the whole game? not ONE?

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

how do you not score? were they all blind?


not ONE basket? really?

not even ONE? in the whole game? not ONE?

"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."

I reckon there should be a new rule on ST - if you reply to a topic and have clearly not read the freaking article you get pinked.

Stop being lazy farking aresholes and READ. :pctoss

[MiamiHeat]

I read the article, numb nut!

my point remains. my 2 little cousins could get 1 freaking basket.

by the way, ADD and dyslexia have nothing to do with being able to play some basketball. they aren't mentally retarded and belong in the special olympics. they just suck.

[mrsmaalox]

The students from both teams were done a great disservice by whichever coaches/school administers allowed these teams to compete in the same division.

[Biernutz]

I guess this will be a learning experience for the losing "learning differences" team. That people are assholes and not good sports.

[Richard Cranium]

The students from both teams were done a great disservice by whichever coaches/school administers allowed these teams to compete in the same division.

They are in the same division for a reason and they don't go by winning and losing records.

[boutons_]

What would Christ do? Perform a miracle of turning losers into winners?

Watch out for that "meek" team, it will inherit the league.

[Rip-Hamilton32]

"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."

I reckon there should be a new rule on ST - if you reply to a topic and have clearly not read the freaking article you get pinked.

Stop being lazy farking aresholes and READ. :pctoss

so they werent blind and still didn't score eh pretty sad

[DMX7]

That's just ridiculous. Asking to forfeit the game later just adds insult to injury.

exactly, they should be the ones forfeiting.

[Nobody]

How about the other team play defense? Can you really tell the other team to stop scoring? Maybe if you're the coach you tell them to stop jacking 3s and nothing fancy... but you still execute your plays. What? Just let the shot clock expire on every play and not shoot? Kind of like in football if you have a massive lead, you just run the ball... but if they don't play defense and you get to the endzone... what do you do? Down it at the one yard line? Fumble on purpose? The fullcourt press was pretty tasteless.

[MiamiHeat]

you take out all of your starters and play your entire bench.

give them all the minutes. good practice for your bench

[Nobody]

you take out all of your starters and play your entire bench.

give them all the minutes. good practice for your bench

I agree with this 100%. But do you tell your bench to not score? You keep playing... maybe turn it down a bit, but you still play.

[CubanMustGo]

you take out all of your starters and play your entire bench.

give them all the minutes. good practice for your bench

The "entire bench" is three players.

BTW the winning coach was fired:

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/012609dnspocovenantnu.2781526.html

The Covenant School fired its girls basketball coach Sunday, the same day he posted a message on a youth basketball Web site saying he disagreed with school officials who had publicly apologized for the team's 100-0 victory over Dallas Academy.

In reporting the firing, Kyle Queal, Covenant's head of school, emphasized that former coach Micah Grimes "now only represents himself" when discussing the game, which has become a national talking point. Queal said he could not say whether the firing was a direct result of the posting and declined to answer any questions.

In a statement posted Sunday on www.flightbasketball.com, Grimes offered his first public comment since the story was first reported.

"I respectfully disagree with the apology, especially the notion that the Covenant School girls basketball team should feel 'embarrassed' or 'ashamed,' " part of the post says. "We played the game as it was meant to be played and would not intentionally run up the score on any opponent. Although a wide-margin victory is never evidence of compassion, my girls played with honor and integrity and showed respect to Dallas Academy."

Grimes also included the quarter-by-quarter scoring on his post: 35, 24, 29, 12.

At the end of his post on the Web site, which identifies him as co-founder of Flight Basketball, Grimes wrote, "So if I lose my job over these statements, I will walk away with my integrity."

Grimes did not teach or work at The Covenant School. He was in his fourth season as girls basketball coach, having built the program from a 2-19 record his first season to a state championship contender last season. Covenant, which plays larger out-of-district schools, is 6-3 this season and undefeated in its Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools district. It has informed TAPPS headquarters that it has chosen to forfeit the Dallas Academy game.

Grimes responded briefly to an e-mail request for an interview, indicating that he might speak at a future date.

On Thursday, Covenant posted a statement on its Web site that said it "regrets ... the outcome of the game with the Dallas Academy Varsity Girls Basketball team. It is shameful and an embarrassment that this happened. This clearly does not reflect a Christ-like and honorable approach to competition." It was signed by Queal and Todd Doshier, chairman of the school's board of trustees.

That was also the day the national spotlight began focusing on the game, following a report in The Dallas Morning News on the 100-point shutout on Jan. 13.

Dallas Academy coaches and administrators say Covenant kept the pressure on until it reached 100 points midway through the fourth quarter.

Until Sunday, Grimes hadn't made any public comments since he e-mailed The News on Wednesday night. In that e-mail, which was also sent to Queal and athletic director Brice Helton, Grimes called scoring 100 points "unfortunate."

"It just happened," he wrote. "Please know Covenant intended no harm against them. I see this as a real learning opportunity, so we can prevent this from happening in the future."

Grimes said in his Sunday post that his team stopped applying full-court defensive pressure after the score reached 25-0 three minutes into the game, then dropped into a relatively benign zone defense and began resting its starters in favor of its three bench players.

Dallas Academy coach Andrew Lott agreed that Covenant stopped pressing at that point but returned with an alternate press later in the game.

"I am 100 percent sure," said Lott, who estimated that his team was able to take seven shots all game.

Dallas Academy, renowned for its work with students who have learning disabilities, is winless this season and has not won a game in at least four seasons.

"He's entitled to his opinion," Lott said of Grimes' assessment of the game. "If you ask 10 people about it, you might get 10 different answers."

Lott said his team did not videotape the game, hosted by Covenant, but he is certain Covenant did.

"Maybe we could look at the tape," Lott said.

Cheryl Bugg, whose daughter is one of Covenant's top players, said she didn't want to talk about the firing.

She said the parents of the team's eight players met with school officials Saturday and outlined three goals for the program:

"We want to represent Christ with the highest respect, we don't want to humiliate anyone ever and we want our students to be enthusiastic in everything they do."

[Dex]

Let's break this down.

Covenant, which sounds like a perfectly normal and competitive basketball team, ran up the score against a team of 8 girls with mental conditions by trapping them constantly then jacking up threes? And some of you don't see a problem with that?

I will usually agree that the other team should just man up and play defense, but this is obviously a special circumstance. And the 100-0 score is the perfect indicator of that. It sounds like they were obviously trying to run up the score, and it sounds like it obviously worked.

Agreed that forfeiting the game is adding fuel to the fire, though.

Looks like Dallas Academy will get their first win off of 0 points. :)

[mogrovejo]

Keep playing hard, trying to score in every possession and stopping the other team to score on the other side. That's the best way of showing respect for a weaker opponent.

However, don't use a full-court pressure defence. Play a straight up 1on1, without traps, without going for steals - just force them to make contested shots, contest every shot. And don't play up-tempo, use the opportunity to polish the half-court offensive proficiency of your team. Practice your signature plays.

Executing the aforementioned procedures would be the correct way to handle the situation. It's the way I was taught and I fully believe it's the right thing to do.

[Dex]

Keep playing hard, trying to score in every possession and stopping the other team to score on the other side. That's the best way of showing respect for a weaker opponent.

However, don't use a full-court pressure defence. Play a straight up 1on1, without traps, without going for steals - just force them to make contested shots, contest every shot. And don't play up-tempo, use the opportunity to polish the half-court offensive proficiency of your team. Practice your signature plays.

Executing the aforementioned procedures would be the correct way to handle the situation. It's the way I was taught and I fully believe it's the right thing to do.

Bingo.

There's a reason (most) teams put their bench fodder on the floor if they are up 15+ in the fourth.

[Slydragon]

Just saw that one of the coaches got fired, I'm going to guess it was the winning teams coach.

[angel_luv]

I am ALL for running up the score.

The only reason I favor the Spurs sitting say Timmy and Manu and Tony when we are leading by a lot is so they can rest.
It has nothing to do with benefiting or befriending the other team.

If a team does not want the score run up on them, they need to make your shots and play defense. No mercy.

[Spurminator]

I'm sure the Dallas Academy appreciates all of the publicity Covenant is giving its basketball program by keeping this story in the news.

[Slydragon]

I am ALL for running up the score.

The only reason I favor the Spurs sitting say Timmy and Manu and Tony when we are leading by a lot is so they can rest.
It has nothing to do with benefiting or befriending the other team.

If a team does not want the score run up on them, they need to make your shots and play defense. No mercy.

I saw this earlier and thought noting of it then I just notice that angel_luv posted it. I did a 2nd take to make sure it was not a troll like angel__lov

Did you see the part where it said Christian school?
Did the bf piss you off or something?

[bballin]

geez i would get bored

[koriwhat]

so these "special" kids... hahaha fuckin' add and dyslexia? come on now! anyhow, these special kids couldn't score 1 lousy point?

i wonder how these kids do in school if they can't even learn how to play on the court? aside from that, how do you fire a coach who was doing his job? seems like a case you can't lose in court to me and if i was that coach that's exactly where i'd take this case to.

ps: learn to play the game or suffer the consequences but don't go crying because you got your ass whooped! and whooped bad at that! 100-0 hahahaha. i'm all for stepping on the throats of your opponent and never backing away not even for a second. it's not about being polite, it's about winning and when people realize this then we won't have so many damn pussies in this world.

[angel_luv]

I saw this earlier and thought noting of it then I just notice that angel_luv posted it. I did a 2nd take to make sure it was not a troll like angel__lov

Did you see the part where it said Christian school?
Did the bf piss you off or something?

No, my fiancee didn't. :lol

I am very competitive when it comes to sports. ( Maybe too much so?)
That is why I stick to being a spectator because my skills are not that, that I could win and win big.
I want the best players out on the court and that is certainly not me. :lol

[angel_luv]

If these kids were challenged then what in the world were they doing in the same division as a school who can score 100 points?

And personally, if I had a disability, I would be insulted to know that people were playing down their skills when they competed against me.

[Melmart1]

My guess is that despite the obvious drop in skills from one team to the other, being a TAPPS school meant that they wanted the girls to play regardless of skill level. Now, it's been 15 years since I played HS sports, but when I did, the thing that was stressed above all else was sportsmanship and Christ, not scoring and records. That's why they would let this team play in a 'division' where they are obviously overmatched -- it is probably that or no division at all. People used to ultra-competitve 5A schools and recruiting may not understand or agree with this, but I am willing to bet that as long as that school wants to field a team, they can go winless for 20 years and still be a part of TAPPS. At least, if things are still done the way they were when I was in HS.

[Frenzy]

at some point during practice.... did the coach not see the girls sucked?


c'mon gabby......(brick)
c'mon sara...(brick)
c'mon stacy (brick)
c'mon stacy again...(air ball)
oh man... try again gabby (brick)
sara get back in the game...pass the ball to gabby she's open.... no not me... to gabby!
(brick)



i mean jeeze... coach should have seen this coming.

[mrsmaalox]

My guess is that despite the obvious drop in skills from one team to the other, being a TAPPS school meant that they wanted the girls to play regardless of skill level. Now, it's been 15 years since I played HS sports, but when I did, the thing that was stressed above all else was sportsmanship and Christ, not scoring and records. That's why they would let this team play in a 'division' where they are obviously overmatched -- it is probably that or no division at all. People used to ultra-competitve 5A schools and recruiting may not understand or agree with this, but I am willing to bet that as long as that school wants to field a team, they can go winless for 20 years and still be a part of TAPPS. At least, if things are still done the way they were when I was in HS.

Ahh, it makes perfect sense to me now. You reminded me of when my kids played soccer with the CYO. Our parish which had no school, volunteer parent coaches, and practiced once a week, competed against teams from parish schools, who had real coaches (teachers at least), and practiced 5 days/week during their gym period. Luckily our team was still pretty good, but damn, that CYO had the most fanatical, unsportsman-like parents that I have ever encountered in kid's sports!

[CubanMustGo]

Here's an update, addressing some of the points discussed here.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/012209dnsposhutout.40d72ee.html

The final score of the high school girls basketball game was 100-0, and his team had the nothing. Still, a week later, Dallas Academy Athletic Director Jeremy Civello was chalking up the game in the win column.

"My girls never quit," he said. "They played as hard as they could to the very end. They played with all their hearts at 70-nothing, 80-nothing and 100-nothing. I was really proud of them. That's what I told them after the game."

The game took place Jan. 13, on the road, against The Covenant School. Civello didn't expect his girls to win. He never really does. His girls haven't won a game in his four seasons at the White Rock Lake-area school, renowned for its work with students with a variety of learning problems. In most games, they haven't come close.

The Bulldogs play, Civello said, for more than the final score. They play in hope of improving skills, learning teamwork and picking up whatever life lessons athletics may bring.

But they won't be playing Covenant again this season; they canceled their Jan. 30 game against the team. After the game, Dallas Academy informed the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools that it was withdrawing its girls team from the league for the rest of the season.

"We just said, 'The hell with it,' " said Jim Richardson, Dallas Academy's headmaster.

Against Covenant, Dallas Academy was surprised to see an obviously superior team keep the pressure on until it scored its 100th point in the fourth quarter. "I'm sure they could have won by 30 points and still had just as good a time," Civello said.

Civello, as is his custom, didn't say anything to anyone from the opposing school after the game. He always allows for a cooling-down period. A week later, he has not been in contact with anyone from Covenant.

In a brief e-mail statement Wednesday evening, Covenant coach Micah Grimes called his team's 100-point total "unfortunate."

"It just happened, and we are not happy about that," Grimes wrote. "Please know Covenant intended no harm against them. I see this as a real learning opportunity, so we can prevent this from happening in the future."

Grimes was not available for further comment.

Kyle Queal, head of school at Covenant, a North Dallas Christian school, was not at the game, but he said there have been internal discussions about it and that more are coming.

"It was poor judgment," Queal said. "I look at the box score and look at the box score, and it was not justified. It will never happen again."

Queal said he hopes his school will work "behind the scenes" with Dallas Academy to make sure the schools continue their "long-standing" relationship.

"I'll say this," Queal said of the Dallas Academy girls, "that was an amazing testimony to their tenacity and perseverance."

Edd Burleson, director of 236-member TAPPS, had a different description. He called the Class 2A, District 3 game an "embarrassing incident."

"Our motto is 'Competition With Honor,' " Burleson said. "I can't see how the one school can live up to that."

The box score that the Covenant head of school has been staring at reveals that his team scored 35 points in the first quarter before building a 59-0 lead at the half. The score after three quarters was 88-0.

"They are really good," Civello said. "Their point guard is terrific. This is what it came down to in the second half: steal at half court and layup. Steal and layup. Steal and layup. It was a layup drill. They finally eased up when they got to 100 with about four minutes left." Covenant's point guard had 48 points.

Dallas Academy is busy piecing together a new schedule of nonleague games. The school, which has final exams this week, played its final TAPPS game of the season Thursday night. The Bulldogs lost, 41-8, to Cambridge School of Dallas.

Cambridge Athletic Director Luke Yarbrough, the TAPPS district president, said he hired his basketball coach with the understanding "that it is possible to beat a team without attempting to demoralize it."

He said he could see the joy on the faces of the Dallas Academy girls when their team scored its points. He enjoyed the view. "I was so happy for those girls," he said.

Yarbrough said the 100-0 game will be among the first orders of business discussed when the district athletic directors meet next month.

Dallas Academy's Civello will be there. His school's boys team remains in the six-team TAPPS district. In fact, he was quick to point out that his boys, with a little extra motivation, beat Covenant, 50-38, immediately after the 100-0 girls game.

Then again, the boys team has about 120 students to choose from. There are about 20 girls in the high school. Some on the eight-girl team had never played before and will never play again.

"Most of these girls would never play on any other school in the state," he said. "But they can say they were high school varsity players here. And they can say it with a sense of achievement."

Later on the 100-0 night, Civello told his girls the life lesson they could take from their loss: "I told them someday they will be on top in a similar situation and they should remember how they felt when some people were cheering for a team to score a hundred points and shut us out. Hopefully, my girls all learned a lesson in sportsmanship that will last them a lifetime."

[Melmart1]

Ahh, it makes perfect sense to me now. You reminded me of when my kids played soccer with the CYO. Our parish which had no school, volunteer parent coaches, and practiced once a week, competed against teams from parish schools, who had real coaches (teachers at least), and practiced 5 days/week during their gym period. Luckily our team was still pretty good, but damn, that CYO had the most fanatical, unsportsman-like parents that I have ever encountered in kid's sports!

This isn't just limited to CYO, but I know where you are coming from. When my nephew played basketball through CYO, it was a disaster. The parents were ultra competitive and it was like they were trying to win vicariously through their kids. It was no fun for anyone, and that was what it was supposed to be -- FUN.

[mogrovejo]

"My girls never quit," he said. "They played as hard as they could to the very end. They played with all their hearts at 70-nothing, 80-nothing and 100-nothing. I was really proud of them. That's what I told them after the game."

The game took place Jan. 13, on the road, against The Covenant School. Civello didn't expect his girls to win. He never really does. His girls haven't won a game in his four seasons at the White Rock Lake-area school, renowned for its work with students with a variety of learning problems. In most games, they haven't come close.

The Bulldogs play, Civello said, for more than the final score. They play in hope of improving skills, learning teamwork and picking up whatever life lessons athletics may bring.

Nice stuff, assuming it's true. They may be outscored by 100, but they obviously have a good, well-coached, basketball program.

[Slydragon]

Nice stuff, assuming it's true. They may be outscored by 100, but they obviously have a good, well-coached, basketball program.

Yup, if that was me when they went up 30-0 I would have hit start and quit and find a new game.