Too many times on these sports pages, we take the time to pay homage to the kids who run the fastest, hit the ball the furthest, make the most jump shots or score the most touchdowns.
After all, it’s all part of the culture that applauds athletic excellence. We all clamor to see athletes excel at what they do, regardless of the level.
We want to see Little Leaguers hit homers. We want to see grade school kids jump high and run fast. And we most certainly want to see high school athletes reach their respective pinnacles and achieve greatness and excellence.
But there is another aspect to high school sports that sometimes gets lost in the shuffle, put to the backburner – and that’s just not right.
A very important aspect to high school athletics is what the kids do in their respective classrooms.
After all, they all have a title. It’s called “student/athlete.” They can’t be simply athletes without the student aspect. They have to go to school, attend classes regularly and strive to matriculate as a student, first and foremost.
But as a society, we tend to forget the achievement in the classroom. It’s all about whether Johnny is eligible to play in Friday night’s big football game against the local rival. It’s whether Jenny will be in the lineup in that crucial girls’ basketball game.
That’s what usually gains the headlines, the spotlight and the attention, not the test scores in the classroom. And honestly, that’s just wrong.
The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association has done its best to maintain the importance of academics in athletics. For years, the NJSIAA has held a special luncheon, held annually at the Pines Manor in Edison, to recognize the efforts of the top student-athletes in each participating school. It’s become a part of the NJSIAA’s lexicon since 1994, honoring the finest scholar-athletes in the state.
Last month, the NJSIAA took the time to honor the top student-athletes in the Class of 2010, and it’s time to recognize those standouts of academia and athletics. Eight Hudson County athletes were among the honorees.
They are: Christine Calvo, Bayonne (tennis); Chanel Wright, Ferris (swimming/tennis); Jessie Northgrave, High Tech (basketball, softball); Ashley Barron, Hoboken (soccer/basketball/softball); Gabrielle Dundas, Holy Family Academy (basketball/softball); Angelica Dabu, County Prep (tennis), Ashley Vasquez, Marist (basketball, softball); Jordan Lienhard, Secaucus (swimming) and James McMahon, Weehawken (basketball, baseball).
All nine are excellent athletes, but even better examples of the true meaning of student-athletes….
Hudson County lost a basketball legend, when Union City native and Hudson County Sports Hall of Famer Fred Barakat died suddenly of a heart attack last Monday at the age of 71.
Barakat was part of the pipeline of basketball players who went from Hudson County to Assumption College in Worcester, Mass. and was a two-time All-American at Assumption. He was drafted by the Knicks in basketball and had a tryout with the San Francisco Giants in baseball.
Barakat then went on to coach basketball at Fairfield University for more than a decade, leading the stags to more than 150 wins and three appearances in the National Invitation Tournament.
From there, Barakat moved on to North Carolina where he became the coordinator of basketball officials and later an assistant commissioner with the powerful Atlantic Coast Conference.
In his later years, Barakat was the director of the ACC Tournament and handled a lot of the television operations for the conference. He retired two years ago and was enjoying retired life when we last saw him at the Final Four in March. A good man who was beloved by all and never forgot his Union City roots, Barakat helped mold college basketball the way it has become. The ACC Tourney is his legacy…
Congrats to the Snyder track and field team for their performances at the recent New Balance National Track and Field Championships in Greensboro, N.C.
Super sensation Zamir Thomas won the 100-meter dash in the emerging elite class with a record time of 10.67 seconds. It means that Thomas now holds two records at the meet, having set the 200-meter record in the emerging elite class last year.
Thomas finished fourth in the 200-meter dash in the nation, giving him All-American status.
The Snyder relay team of Thomas, Rashawn Taylor, Timoy Malcolm and Dwight Andrews placed in two different relay events, the 4×100 and 4×200…
The popular EXTRA INNINGS weekly feature will begin again next week. EXTRA INNINGS focuses on the best stories that come from local baseball and softball leagues throughout the area.
If you have any noteworthy information to contribute to the EXTRA INNINGS, feel free to contact Jim Hague by voice mail at 201-798-7800, ext. 751, by general mail at 1400 Washington St., Hoboken, NJ 07030, or via e-mail at OGSMAR@aol.com. Please include a telephone contact name and number, in order to secure further information for a possible story…. – Jim Hague
Jim Hague can be reached at OGSMAR@aol.com.