Each year, Lipan players travel 360 miles to stay with Nazareth players' families. On Friday, they played for a state championship.
By Alan TrubowAMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF Saturday, March 11, 2006
Their embraces were firm and heartfelt, the smiles warm and genuine, the congratulations meaningful.
Seconds after the final whistle blew, Lipan High School basketball Coach Tommy Bleeker walked down the line of Nazareth players, looking like a father beaming at his sons' accomplishments.
Thanks to some Texas hospitality, Lipan Coach Tommy Bleeker, left, and Nazareth's Alan Gerber were friends before the teams met at the Erwin Center.
Nazareth had just beaten Lipan 53-48 for the Class A Division II state championship Friday at the Erwin Center, but when it was over, the two teams laughed and reminisced. Bleeker had a huge hug for Nazareth junior Berry Clinton, a big pat on the stomach for center Charlie Rundell, a smile and a pound on the shoulders for Dustin Schulte and a long embrace for Nazareth Coach Mike Scarbrough.
Behind him, every one of his Lipan players was doing the same thing.
There were winners. There were losers. But more than anything, there were friendships and memories. Nothing less was expected, however. Not from these two teams. That's because Lipan and Nazareth, high school basketball powerhouses from small farming towns 360 miles apart, established a special bond five years ago during the early-season Nazareth Tournament. Players from Lipan stayed with the families of Nazareth players, forging friendship out of sportsmanship.
"I think, if we could, we would play Lipan for the state title every year," Scarbrough said. "You couldn't come up with a better ending for both programs. We both have so much respect for each other. The relationship and this experience is so unique."
That's an understatement.
"It's like playing your best friend, or your brother. Only you're playing them for a state title instead of in the driveway," said Nazareth's Jake Hoelting, who scored 13 points Friday. "You get up when you're playing against your family or friends. You want to beat them even more. It means more. "But once it's over, you go back to being friends or family. That's what this is like. Before and after the game, we're friends. During the game, we're opponents."
And that's how it looked Friday, as the teams went back and forth. The Swifts (33-4), Class A's No. 1-ranked team in Division II, fell behind 15-7 as Lipan center Brent Stewart took control early on his way to scoring a game-high 15 points. But Nazareth finally established itself in the third quarter, rattling off a game-changing 8-0 run that was capped by Alan Gerber's three-point shot to give the Swifts a 31-23 lead.
Nazareth never trailed again.
But Friday wasn't just about winning and losing. It was about everything high school sports should be.
"This is just a great story and a great experience," Nazareth Principal Deborah Clinton said. "I think the whole tournament experience with them teaches our kids discipline, loyalty and sportsmanship. It gives them the chance to make lifelong friends they wouldn't have met."
That was the plan former Nazareth Superintendent Dean Johnson had when he invited Lipan to the Swifts' first tournament in 2002. After all, he thought, both communities were small. Both were old-fashioned American farming towns. And both shared a deep passion for and history in basketball, as the teams have combined for 19 state tournament appearances and six state championships, including the past two years. (Lipan won in 2005.)
"What happened was the old superintendent had an experience like this in high school where his team stayed with the opposing players," Bleeker said. "We wouldn't have the money to stay in a hotel for three days and play in their tournament, so Johnson told us that, instead, his players would host us. We stay in their houses. They feed us. They treat us like we're family. "We were a little worried about it the first year, and the players weren't too excited, but now it's become one of the highlights of our year."
It's easy to see why. Everybody winds up with fond memories.
For Chad Johnson, it's pumpkin bowling. "That's what I'll always remember. I'd never done anything like that until I went to Nazareth. They showed us what it was," Johnson said. "You, um, take a few pumpkins from a local patch, get in your car and hang out the window. Then you drop the pumpkin down the street. Eventually, the pumpkin picks up speed and just splatters all over. We've been doing it in Lipan now, too."
For the rest of the Lipan team, going to Nazareth every year is about Catherine Huseman — grandmother of senior Nathan Huseman — and her homemade cinnamon rolls. "Those are probably the best things to eat up there. Those cinnamon rolls are just amazing. I probably have four or five every time," Lipan guard Casey Riddle said. "Last time we went, there was only one roll left, and my dad ended up buying it for $100. That's how good they are."
So good that Lipan asked Catherine Huseman if she would make some for the Indians and bring them to Austin this week. And even though her grandson was playing those same Indians for a state championship, she said yes. "Of course I did. I made them two dozen," Huseman said. "These are our friends. I even gave somebody in Lipan the recipe, though she'll need to make about 100 dozen to ever get them to taste as good as mine."
Friday's title game was about competition. And sportsmanship. And friendship.
Not that everybody left completely satisfied. "You always want to win, no matter who you're playing," Riddle said. "I'm happy for them, but we came in here trying to win our second straight state title. It leaves a bitter taste."
Luckily, Riddle knows a good place to get great cinnamon rolls. And, for the rest of the Indians, there's always next year.
"Oh, we're going back to Nazareth," Bleeker said. "And I promise everybody is looking forward to it."
Even Nazareth.
atrubow@statesman.com; 445-3959
This story by Alan Trubow is copied from the web without permission from the Austin American-Statesman. It wonderfully depicts the Naz Lipan relationship that has added to the special nature of this basketball season.
The photos off the web are Kelly West's. The cinnamon roll picture of Huseman and Riddle is Nanci Holtsford's. The handshakes, the team huddle at tip-off and the shot of the final score are mine.
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