(The following is a story from my hometown newspaper, The Repository of Canton, Ohio, concerning my old college basketball coach and the team I played for in the late 1980’s. I thought it was an inspiring article. You can get more information, with pictures and video, at www.cantonrep.com. Just click on “sports” and then “local sports.”)
Tragedies off the court help bring
BY Andy Call
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER
When Head Coach Hal Smith looked at a talented and experienced Malone College men’s basketball team last fall, he believed the Pioneers were about to become winners.
He didn’t know they were about to become men.
Tragedies and trials involving Malone’s coaches and players this winter have resulted in a bond that transcends basketball. That the Pioneers (16-5) are ranked in the NAIA Top 25 entering tonight’s Mayors’ Cup game against Walsh may be considered a byproduct of that bond. It also may be considered simply a coincidental element of what has been a terribly difficult process of learning and maturing.
“This team was close before,” Smith said.
“These tragedies added a depth to those feelings.”
The first challenge came before the season even began. Assistant coach Greg Bryte’s wife, Lori, 38, suffered a stroke in October and died days later. He received a significant degree of support from younger men, some of whom had never even had a girlfriend.
“When someone tells you they’re praying for you, that means something,” Bryte said. “The way these guys got behind me meant a lot.”
In mid-November, sophomore center Ted Lawver’s wife lost a baby in the early stages of her pregnancy. He received support from teammates, some of whom had very little prior experience with the loss of a loved one.
“The things that have happened, both in my life and the others, made us have conversations we might never have had otherwise,” Lawver said.
Tragedy struck again Dec. 21. Jack Renner, father of senior forward Tyler Renner, was running errands for his employer in Coshocton when his car was struck by a tractor-trailer. The 49-year-old Renner died instantly.
“We had the calling hours on Dec. 23 and the funeral on Christmas Eve,” Tyler Renner said. “The entire team came to calling hours. Most of the guys came to the funeral. They left their families on Christmas Eve and drove 100 miles or whatever just to be there with me. That was a huge show of support.”
It wasn’t as if there had been no challenges before. Smith’s ongoing battle with a rare liver disease is well-documented, and he could undergo a liver and kidney transplant before next season. The NAIA Hall of Fame coach missed four games in December while hospitalized.
“These guys have to deal with my sickness every day,” Smith said.
From the eyes of an opponent, Malone’s players appear to have dealt with it pretty well.
“His team and everything they’ve gone through … I can’t say enough about how Malone and Coach Smith have kept it together this year,” Walsh Head Coach Jeff Young said. “That takes a special group of guys. When Coach (Steve) Loy was sick (in 2004), it really tore our team apart. We never really came back from that, and we lost a lot of games that year.”
The Pioneers have won 11 of their last 12 games and haven’t lost on the road since their season opener.
“It takes my mind off everything for a couple hours,” Renner said. “It’s become an escape, in a good way. Basketball has become more fun for me. I appreciate it more.”
Renner said dealing with tragedies also has given Malone’s players a deeper understanding of the importance of faith in their lives.
“The first thing everybody does is ask ‘Why?’ ” Renner said. “It’s not for us to ask God why. You just ask God for comfort and to help you get through it. Sometimes that help comes through friends. I’m not the only one on this team going through a hard time.”
Beating Walsh is a tall order, something Malone has accomplished just twice in its last 18 games against its crosstown rival.
But when compared with what the Pioneers already have faced, the Cavaliers don’t look nearly as frightening.
“Thursday at 8, these guys will be thinking about nothing but Walsh,” Smith said. “After the game, they’ll go back to thinking about life. And even if it isn’t easy, this is life.”"
