Championship Weekend

Here it is. The most complete championships weekend of the fall for sports played under the PIAA umbrella. This weekend we will honor and recognize more champions and runner ups than any other time in the fall sports' season. We will crown champions in volleyball, field hockey and soccer at the state championship level and also many district and sub-regional football champions in their quest to advance to the PIAA Championships in December.

This is the time, in the words of Coach Vince Lombardi, " ...to stand and cheer the doer, the achiever, the one that recognizes the challenge and does something about it". That is the group we are recognizing this weekend. May we be the first to recognize you on your achievements and compliment you on a job well done. Your championship is a commitment to excellence and to your teammates found in no other area of the educational arena.

But first, we must honor those who have pushed us to this brink, this pinnacle, this climax. It is without their challenges and their commitment to excellence that we do not stand before you on the podium of champions receiving the accolades that are thrust upon us.

It is the opponent, the challenger, the struggle, the fine line between in and out, good and no good, fair and foul, that makes the difference between the two. It is the robustness of the opponent, the runner up, that makes this all possible.

So when we stand upon the podium receiving our medals, make sure we acknowledge those that helped us achieve this moment by their class and conviction to the challenge. In the words of Olympic champion, Wilma Rudolf, "Winning is great, sure, but if you are really going to do something in life, the secret is learning how to lose. Nobody goes undefeated all the time. If you can pick up after a crushing defeat, and go on to win again, you are going to be a champion someday."

Thanks to all that have participated in our championships; they are truly, all champions.