Sara Tucholsky's first college home run was a 3-run shot in the 2nd inning of a scoreless game to determine whether her Western Oregon (WOU) team or Central Washington (CWU) would qualify for the NCAA Division 2 softball tournament. Rounding first, Tucholsky's knee gave out and she collapsed. Mallory Holtman, CWU's star 1st-baseman, reacted to Tucholsky in pain on the ground. She and teammate Liz Wallace carried Tucholsky, allowing her to score the third run for WOU, which went on to win 4-2.
Was Holtman and Wallace's action an example of outstanding sportsmanship or of a lack of competitiveness? Why?
If you were the CWU pitcher, how might you feel about your teammates enabling the opponent to score what might have been the winning run?
If this had happened in a high-stakes professional championship, would it be appropriate for an opposing player to do what Holtman did? Why or why not?
Would you encourage your child to emulate Mallory Holtman? What might you say to him or her?
What might a comparable act of sportsmanship be in other sports?
Response by PCA Founder Jim Thompson
The Mallory Moment
We title this case study “The Limits of Sportsmanship” because sportsmanship (what PCA calls Honoring the Game) often is constrained by a win-at-all-cost mentality. Ron Smith asserted the need for room for acts of kindness in sports, but all too often these opportunities are never even noticed.
I have talked with coaches who do not want their players to help an opponent up even after the whistle blows because that might take the edge off their competitive killer instinct. This is a shame as the “fierce and friendly” approach to sports is a beautiful one. You compete fiercely to win but you don’t demonize your opponent and you can be friends after the game (and even within the game!).
Coaches who teach Honoring the Game will want to incorporate this example into their team culture. As Don Lafferty noted in his blog comment below, “the unique nature of the home run… provides a technical nuance not found in other sports.” But Double-Goal Coaches will want to prime players to be ready for opportunities like the one that Mallory and Liz seized upon...and the one in the lovely lacrosse story shared in Chris Carroll's blog comment.
In my presentation to high school athletes on the “Identity of the Triple-Impact Competitor” (who makes self, teammates and the game better), I share this softball incident and end my talk by asking them how they will respond when their opportunity appears. It won’t look exactly like the softball example, but sooner or later, if they continue competing, they will have a “Mallory Moment.” Whether they use it to make the game better depends on them.
Another aspect of a positive team culture (“the way WE do things HERE”) would be to want to win “fair and square.” James Johnson’s comment says, “Most truly serious athletes want to know that when they won, it was on their own effort” not on a technicality. Double-Goal Coaches emphasize to their team that winning by dishonoring the game is worse than losing.
I emphasize the role of the coach here because without a strong team culture of Honoring the Game, this could have degenerated into the rest of the team criticizing Holtman and Wallace for hurting their competitive position, especially in a game when they still had a chance at making the playoffs. I have seen little in the news stories about the Central Washington coach, but several commenters note that he must be doing something right. Barry King said, this was “a tremendous testament to doing it the right way and preparing athletes for careers as humans.” Michael Rando eloquently stated, “Inside the game, we live by a rulebook but the game and the rulebook are but a part of a larger game. Our lives.” And isn’t that what youth sports is supposed to be about? Yes!
Let’s not overlook the irony of the positive possibilities that arrive when things go wrong. Had Sara Tucholsky not hurt her leg rounding first, virtually no one would have ever known about this game. The fact that something went wrong created possibilities that Holtman seized. Had everything happened according to plan, just another game out of hundreds, nothing special. Instead, as Derek Bowers notes, “…both teams will remember this for the rest of their lives…”
Returning to the concept of the Triple-Impact Competitor who makes self, teammates and the game better, the Mallory Moment was a superb example of athletes seizing an opportunity to make the game better. And in doing so, Mallory Holtman and Liz Wallace make all of us who care about sports better.
-- Jim Thompson, PCA Founder
Posted by David Jacobson at 06/30/2008 12:28:30 PM |
Stripped down to its bare essentials, the action of Holtman and Wallace was a terrific way to honor the game and its ideal. Softball and baseball are unique in that the player that hits a home run must complete the score by touching the bases. Holtman and Wallace showed compassion for Tucholsky by carrying her, but also a focus on the game by ensuring that she scored.
Most truly serious athletes want to know that when they won, it was on their own effort, not because someone else was "less than their best." I believe that Holtman and Wallace probably felt that way as well. They wanted to get there legitimately, not on a "pass". If I had been the pitcher, I certainly would have felt the same. After all, Tucholsky had already hit the home run.
I believe that no one who gets somewhere by cutting corners ever is able to completely accept their achievement as entirely legitimate. It would ring hollow. That is what I would share with my children, and have for years.
One of the easiest places to see people honoring the game is on the golf course, where true champions call infractions upon themselves, even when no one else is around to observe.
Hats off to the players and coaches at CWU!!
Posted by: James D. Johnson ( Email: | Visit ) at 6/30/2008 5:18 PM
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Since I write quite a bit about coaching youth sports, I’ve had dozens of parents and coaches bring this story to my attention over the past several weeks. Every single person who hears this story, without exception, admires and agrees with the sportsmanship demonstrated by Holtman and Wallace.
In discussing their act of good sportsmanship with several dozen players, I found that they too felt the Central Washington players’ actions were not only admirable, but the ONLY thing to do under the circumstances.
One could certainly argue that at some levels of competition winning is the ONLY thing, but in this case, winning on a technicality caused by a player injury would have left a stain on the victory, the championship and the college careers of the winning players.
In the world of professional sports, where players and coaches are paid to win, I’m not so sure it would have been as widely understood, even though it may have been the right moral course to take.
I already know how my own 16 year old athlete feels about this subject, and I’m happy to say that she didn’t need counsel from me to arrive at her opinion.
I guess you might be able to draw a corollary in another sport, but the unique nature of the home run – that is, one that’s hit out of the park -- provides a technical nuance not found in other sports. At least one that I can dream up at this moment. If I come up with something I’ll check back.
Posted by: Don Lafferty ( Email: | Visit ) at 6/30/2008 5:40 PM
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This case shows how competing with Honor, is more important than winning. If they had not helped we would not have known how it would have effected the final outcome. These ladies understood that the homerun had happened and touching the bases was just the formal record of the run being scored. Had they not helped her, and they won the game, I think they would have felt that the win was somewhat not worthy.
At the professional level, you hope that this would happen, I am not sure, it would. In Soccer, when a player goes down, alot of players will kick the ball out of play. when the ball is put back into play the ball is given back to the team who kicked it out.
Posted by: patrick white ( Email: | Visit ) at 6/30/2008 8:11 PM
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Sportsmanship goes far beyond the rules of the game. This was refreshing to hear about a team (and more specifically the two girls) that put others before self. The running of the bases is a technicality with a home run shot. It was the right thing to do. This could have so easily been a story about a team that denied a legitimate home run for their sole gain.
Posted by: Aaron Bussiere ( Email: ) at 6/30/2008 10:00 PM
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I think this is an excellent example of sportsmanship and one that should be emulated. The game provides many other opportunities for competitiveness. In every other aspect of the game, the young women demonstrated their competitiveness, so this one act should not call into question their will to compete.
Helping their opponent around the bases did not dismiss the fact that she hit a homerun, so the pitcher should be willing to accept that fact and move on. In fact, the pitcher too should applaud such an outstanding display of sportsmanship and human kindness. There is room for acts of human kindness in sports too.
Posted by: Ron H. Smith ( Email: ) at 7/1/2008 1:53 AM
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I believe that this ranks in the top three greatest examples of sportsmanship ever. It is, however, the way that the two players from CWU reacted to the public reaction that really makes this incident stand out.
The players seemed semi stunned by the attention given to their effort. They did what was expected of them and what they expected of themselves. That is a program in which I would want my children to participate. The only thing that would have made this better for me is if the coach would have asked the players to "pick her up and help her around."
I am sure that given time that would have happened. All in all, a tremendous testament to doing it the right way and preparing athletes for careers as humans.
Posted by: Barry King ( Email: ) at 7/1/2008 6:50 AM
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Fantastic thing to do, I understand the homerun had already been hit. I am trying to think of a similar situation in my game, rugby, but I can not.
Rugby is about confrontation: if you are not fit enough to compete on a very physical level, you will looe. (but that confrontation also forges the bond between all rugby players....)
Great to read the story!
Posted by: Martin.slagt@xs4all.nl ( Email: | Visit ) at 7/1/2008 10:08 AM
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I believe that both teams will remember this for the rest of their lives and it will have an impact on them and everyone that they recount it to. I probably got a dozen emails about this when it happened. At our youth softball field, all of the parents were talking about it. The effect of this single act has spread wildly.
The player hit the home run, botom line. I agree with everyone above. That being said, we are all members of the PCA. It would be interesting if there was a way to blind poll coaches across the country. My guess is that in a poll, most would agree to do the sportsmanship thing. In the heat of competition, the numbers might skew a little more. I guess that's why spreading the word through organizations like PCA is important.
Posted by: Derek Bowers ( Email: | Visit ) at 7/1/2008 10:18 AM
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A truly admirable gesture by Holtman and Wallace, but what lies behind it?
Obviously, good values growing up (parents share the credit), a team culture that values "sportsgirlship" (kudos to the unnamed coach), and a good softball program at CWU that puts that sort of coach in charge of a team and retains that sort of player. As we all know, changing sports requires more than influencing the individual attitudes of the players.
A parallel show of Fair Play in professional soccer can be seen at the following URL: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/322892/football_fair_play/ :
Dutch team Ajax scores accidentally when returning the ball to RKC after an injury. When the ball is kicked off again, Ajax players remain still and let RKC score to tie.
By the way, I think the coach didn't need to order the girls to carry Tucholsky around the bases because she'd already done an outstanding job in team practice.
Posted by: Raúl Escalante ( Email: ) at 7/1/2008 4:57 PM
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What an awesome life lesson. I am sure all that were involved in this game will remember it for the rest of their lives. These are "games" that we "play" and ultimately it is for fun. Sara's homerun may have been her first and last depending on how severe the injury was. The opposing players may have recognized that they were witnessing the end of someone's career and wanted her to be credited with the homerun that she indeed hit. I wish I had been there!
Posted by: Carl Benson ( Email: ) at 7/2/2008 9:13 AM
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In more than 30 years of coaching I have never witnessed a more noble act of sportsmanship. The moment I saw the video I emailed the Central Washington development department to commend both players, and to make a financial contribution to the school's general fund in their name. Never has the sentiment "Sports do not build character, they reveal it" been truer.
These women did instinctively what their character dictated. In the process, they drew honor to their upbringing, their families, their school, their opponent, their sport and themselves.
I consider the actions of these two women to be the single greatest act of sportsmanship on record because it was done spontaneously, in the heat of battle, and by amateur athletes in true spirit of competition.
My initial reaction was to see if I could hire one or both or these women. My second thought was to suggest to my own daughter, who is considering colleges, that she give serious consideration to attending Central Washington.
Posted by: Jim Paglia ( Email: ) at 7/2/2008 2:46 PM
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Mallory and Liz should be applauded for their sportsmanship, but beyond this, they should be applauded for their humanness!
Inside the game, we live by a rulebook but the game and the rulebook are but a part of a larger game. Our lives. We live by morals and codes. We should all be content with the fact that two women helped another woman when she could not help herself.
Are we supposed to abandon our "humanness" because of a game, or a rule, or a regulation? If we do, when and where does it end?
This act will be remembered well beyond the outcome of the game. I can only thank these women, players, coaches, and parents for a job well done!! It seems to me that this game had two winning teams and I would be proud to say I was a part of either organization!!
Thank You ladies for giving me back the reason for becoming a coach in the first place.
Michael Rando
Danvers, MA
Posted by: michael rando ( Email: ) at 7/12/2008 10:21 AM
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As a coach and PT, I stress the conduct of good sporstmanship. We are all competitive. We all want to win. That is why we are involved in sports. It shows in everything we do.
To win by playing the game according to the rules is my prime focus and to win or lose by showing your respect for the other team or individual shows maturity that extends beyond the playing field. People who show true competitiveness, the will to win while respecting their opponents, are the real SUPERSTARS of the sporting world.
Posted by: gene ( Email: | Visit ) at 7/16/2008 8:36 AM
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It is both a terrific story and a lesson to follow when creating a blue print for our own youth sports programs. I will be asking the director of our local lacrosse program to tell this story at both the parents meeting, and to instruct each coach to discuss it with their players at their first practice next season. I think for these lessons to take hold, they need to become the driving force of our programs.
"Constancy of purpose" needs to be the approach or these events will be few and far between. Although the blog unanimously supports these players' actions, my experience tends to have me believe, someone in the stands that night thought it was the dumbest thing they ever saw (at the time...without the heat of the game, I am sure they see the value in it now). The real challenge is making sure the dissenters in the crowd that night; do not influence the direction or culture of our teams or our clubs. Too often the loudest voice (not always the best voice) is steering the ship of our youth programs.
I do also find it troubling that parallels in our own sports are hard to find. I think there are many in all sports. Soccer was briefly mentioned (the universally accepted practice of putting the ball into touch- out of bounds, allowing trainers to tend to an injured player, and then returning the ball to the team who played it out), and it is truly a great act of sportsmanship.
One of the things that is so great about it is how widely it is accepted as part of the culture of the game. The rules also support such acts, as the referee can add time at his discretion to balance out any delays. But there are many similar opportunities that present themselves in all sports.
We had one in a competitive club lacrosse game last season. We were playing on a central clock, and the official had no ability to add time for injury, equipment time outs, etc. Late in the game, ahead by one, we were awarded a free position 8 meters away from goal (one on one with the goalie).
The official was setting the position, and realized the opposing team's goalie did not have the proper throat protector on her helmet. The team did not have another helmet, and as the central clock ticked away, a coach from our team sprinted to the parking lot, to get the other team's goalie another helmet. The free position was delayed for 3 mins, while we retrieved the helmet, and just before the free position was started, the official now noticed, the goalie didn't have the required mouth guard!
In frustration, the official sent the goalie from the field and attempted to restart the free position (now 8 meters away 1 on none, with no goalie!). We instructed our attacker to not shoot on the empty net, cycle the ball behind the goal and wait until the goalie returned to the crease. The team sacrificed a guaranteed win (forcing the team to play with out a goalie because they did not have an approved helmet), or a guaranteed goal (not shooting on the open net).
The kids didn't think anything of it. Our kids love to win, hate to lose, but know winning with out earning it (against a team with no goalie), has no value at all. The girls eventually won by three goals, and celebrated their accomplishment. It wouldn't have been much to celebrate or much of accomplishment if we won by technicality. Good lesson for sports and life.
Posted by: Chris Carroll ( Email: ) at 7/18/2008 7:35 AM
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Story from 40 plus years ago. We had a terrific JV basketball team with a whimp of a coach. One of the starters was a Junior, a rarity. To the chase then: there are a few seconds to go, we are down one, a guy gets fouled, we call time out, the Jr. suggests to the coach that our teammate the Cat, who had 25 that game, go to the line in place of the guy who got fouled, who is to this day my dear friend but he could not then, any more than now, shoot foul shots.
The coach agreed, leaving the Cat and the rest of us dumbfounded. The Cat went to the line and wildly missed both. The Jr. went on to be married twice; only problem was both were at the same time.
None of us ever spoke about that moment but I am sure that my teammates still remember it, and no more fondly than I.
Post script, one of my teammates is a scratch golfer and as a young teacher, was invited to join a very, very presitigious golf club on Long Island. He was to become a superintendent of schools. At any rate, this is the story told to me by one of the members after my teammate invited me to play a round at the club: Ray was playing in the final round of the club championship, and it went to extra holes. The first tee at the club was adjacent to the driving range. Just as the other competitor was about to hit his drive, a yelp came out from the driving range and the guy all but missed his drive, sending it only about 20 feet.
Ray begged the guy to hit again, but he wouldn't. So Ray walked up to the tee, took his driver in his right hand, and tipped the ball the same 20 feet.
Ray came in second that day, but not in the eyes of his fellow club members. Hearing that story, it helped cleanse my soul of the scar from our Championship season. Honor the game!
Posted by: Rich Cohen ( Email: ) at 7/31/2008 7:22 AM
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As an athlete transitioning into a young coach I believe what Holtman and her fellow teammate did was incredible. There are too many negative attitudes from players, coaches, and fans in sports today. Sometimes we all forget what the game is all about and how privileged we should be to be able to be a part of it. As players we want to win and as coaches we want to see our players excel and succeed, but we have to remember sport isn’t just about winning and losing. It’s about development, honor, and character. What these girls did, especially in the situation they were in, showed how much respect they have for themselves, their opponents, and for the game. As a player you should be able to switch back and forth from game mode, being aggressive, to doing what is the right in a given situation. Also as coaches we should be teaching our players this. Good sportsmanship isn’t just about shaking hands before and after a game or kneeling when a player is hurt, it’s about showing respect and appreciation for those affected by the game. If everyone had that same character and talent as these girls showed then everyone would playing. That’s what makes the game special.
Posted by: Christina Cummings ( Email: ) at 9/11/2009 1:11 PM
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