For those who might wonder what all the fuss is about concerning that touching display of sportsmanship last spring by two members of the Central Washington University fastpitch team consider this juxtaposition:
In the same week that Mallory Holtman and Liz Wallace were presented an ESPY award in Los Angeles, another doping scandal was surfacing on the Tour de France. With that type of bad news and scandals constantly giving sports a bad name, little wonder that the CWU duo's spontaneous and unselfish effort would be such a welcome breath of fresh air.
Holtman and Wallace, along with Western Oregon University's Sara Tucholsky, were voted the "best moment" award, one of several sports awards presented during an event sponsored by cable television network ESPN.
During a game between the Wildcats and Wolves in Ellensburg last April, Tucholsky homered, but missed first base and started back to tag it when she collapsed with a knee injury. Since her own teammates were barred by rules from helping her, Holtman and Wallace -- to the delight of fans --volunteered to carry Tucholsky around the bases so the three-run homer would count.
We noted in a May 5 editorial:
The record books will show that CWU lost that game, 4-2, which ended the Wildcats' chances of winning the conference and advancing to the playoffs.
What the books won't show is that something much more valuable than a win or playoff spot came out of this game. In a most unusual, three-person home run trot, we were shown what good sportsmanship is -- or should be -- all about.
We certainly stand by that now as we salute these young women again for reminding us all about the good side of sports and athletes.
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