Lick Wilmerding High School - Commencement Yearbook (San Francisco, CA)

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IERJWL LIFE -fune,19E-771 final selection of our first team was not made until after that game, which shows how little we thought of them. I was elected captain. The honor did not thrill me much. I knew how much work went with it. A captain has to keep his team fighting mad and full of pep 3 he plays and roots at the same time, and he takes the blame whenever there is any. The game with Midland, which we played next, was a close one. From the first whistle to the last long blast just as the deciding goal trickled through the basket, it was exciting. The Murdock brothers showed their stuff well. I managed to score a good deal, and was lucky enough to be responsible for the winning goal. I'm not very quick on my feet, but I have a very straight eye, and I can generally sink a goal two chances in three. That's my strong point. Harry Cooper dropped into the locker-room as we were dressing, asked for the score, and explained that he had just come from the Sewell-Kenton game. Oh, that's why you weren't leading the rooters today? But what were you doing there? I asked. There's a very strong sentiment against scouting Escorting my girl, who's a Kenton co-ed, he explained. Say, Sewell has the most wonderful center I ever saw. His name's Marshall. I-Ie's a peach I I groaned. f'He's a mighty clean player, too, went on Cooper. 'fOne of their guards and several of the subs are dirty players of the worst sort. They fouled over and over, and as often as not the referee didn't see. Marshall didn't like it, and bawled them out when he could. Gee, I'd like to play against him ! I-Ie sighed. Cooper hurt his knee a year ago and it's still stiff, but before that he was a star player. He knows more about basketball than any one else in the state, I think. I talked to the team about what Cooper had told me. You've got to play clean, I cautioned. It,s easier to win clean, and it's better for the school. Marshall, of Sewell, is a wonderful player and a clean player. VVe aren't wonderful, but we can be square. We played Lincoln and won by a narrow margin. Then we came in ahead of Kenton and Oakwood, and won from juvenal by three points. The Sewell game was our last scheduled one, and if we won or even tied it we'd be eligible for the finals. 4. They held a big rally for us at Hammond, the day before the Sewell game. The team sat up in front and listened to the speeches. I had to get up and orate too. It was worse than being bawled out by the coach. The game was at Sewell. There were about a million rooters on the train, hang- ing out of every car-window. We had a car to ourselves, with just a few student- body officers wandering in and out, and it had bunting draped all over the outside. The dining room at the Sewell Hotel, where we lunched land not on very much either, for the game was called for two o'clockj was packed with Hammond sup- porters, waving yellow banners. There was a lot of noise. Arthur Murdock began to be hysterical about half an hour after lunch, and Peter and I had to walk him up and down and soothe him untilit was time to dress. That soothed our own nerves, too, for some reason. There must have been six thousand people at the game. The place -it was a lj Page 22 if

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1 fMl'I6f,YIgZYnm-wb My gr if viL1W1L LIYEE In the Last Minutes of Play WENDELA HAXVKINS, ZSJ. 65,1 X69 F anybody asks you, tell 'em you don't know - hurnmed Peter Murdock fre il. disconsolately, and sat down on the floor of the gym. The rest of the squad followed his example. I hesitated, watching Coach Jennings. His lu ,Q face was troubled, and he tapped one foot restlessly while he scribbled midwife pothooks in a little black notebook. For eight years Hammond College had held the state championship. Twice we had won the permanent ownership of one of the tall, slender, engraved cups. This year we were in line for a third -but the first practice game was just over, and not a member of the squad had showed up more than fairly. Most of us hadn't done even that. And our winning this year was important to Hammond. One of the alumni had promised a big swimming-pool when the trophy shelf should show five cups won without any strings to them since his graduation. We had now one for football, one for track, and two for basketball. Coach Jennings turned to the squad and cleared his throat. I knew what he was going to say, for he had discussed it with me that afternoon while the others were warming up. The wall telephone rang before he could begin. He answered it, listened for a minute, spoke briefly, and hung up again. I'll be gone a few minutes, he announced briefly. Heath, you know what I was going to say to them, say it. The door closed. Boys, you all know how poorly you played todayf' I began. Honestly, it was terrible! Of course, we can't expect much this early in the season, but we can expect something, especially from those who were on the squad last year. Now, what about it? Are we going to fall down in front of the whole school when they're expecting us to win that pool for them? We aren't as good as we were last year, and the other schools are better than they were. That means that winning will be a lot harder. So we can't afford to have a single man break training. You all know the training rules. If there's any one who doesn't think that he can keep them every minute of every day of the season, let him say so now and get out! No one said anything. I looked them over. Perhaps you don't know your own faults, I went on. You, Horton, are too slow to dribble. Schirmer, when you shoot a basket don't stop to think about it after the ball leaves your hands. Chesterton, you don't guard high enough. Lee, you're afraid of the ball. Same thing -holds true for you, Colman. I knew the faults of every one of them. They squirmed, but they knew that I knew what I was talking about, and that I was as well acquainted with my own faults as I was with theirs. V The squad responded better than I could have hoped, but no really fine players developed. We were just a mediocre team that was determined to win. And the practice season ended, and the interscholastic schedule began. We won our first game easily. They were a weak team from a small school. The fPage 21 1

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- - LiW'L L152 big indoor court near the football stadium -- was jammed so full that the hot-dog and peanut men had to step over people sitting in theaisles. They cheered us as we came out. Harry Cooper was leading. Then they began to sing one of the school songs while we warmed up. I amused myself trying to shoot goals in time to the music. I wasn't very successful. Then Sewell cheered l1er team, especially Marshall. I heard that he had been shifted to guard after the first two games, and that he played even better there than he had at center. The subs left the Floor and we took our positions. The referee's whistle blew, and the ball went up. A Marshall was guarding me. He was wonderful. It was almost impossible for me to get close to the basket. However, he was disturbed by two men on his team. They were evidently the ones Cooper had mentioned. Schirnter, our other forward, was having a terrible time with his guard, who was a very clever fouler. Play square, can't you P ordered Marshall in a sharp whisper as he passed the guard. He had to repeat the caution several times, and it worried him. Our guards were not much good. That meant that we must put all our attention on scoring more than Sewell could. With Marshall guarding me, that was work, but it was wonderful work. Any one could enjoy playing against him. We made sixteen points in the first half, and Sewell made eighteen. Almost no subs had been put in, but we had to let Schirmer and Arthur Murdock rest after the half. Hewett and Conway replaced them, but Hewett didn't stay in long. After four or five minutes he slipped-but I know the Sewell center had some- thing to do with it l-and had to be helped off the court. Urquhart guarded the chief Sewell scorer after that. Marshall was playing queerly as the third quarter ended. I couldn't make it out, and it puzzled me as we changed places. After I began to understand, I ad- mired him more than ever. I-Ie was trying to prevent other injuries caused by the foul players on his own team-and they were fast players, too-and guard me at the same time. The score was even at twenty-one to twenty-one. Marshall was all over the place. He was guarding both Conway and me, and elbowing out the other Sewell guard as much as he could. His face was very pale, and the strain seemed to be trying him. He had been going at a tremendous pace, and still was. I hadn't kept track of the time, of course. I was too busy for that. But some one shouted, A minute and a half to go! Keep it up, boysf, Sewell scored again. It was a pretty play, too. Marshall took almost no part in it. His breath was com- ing in short gasps. I did not notice that especially, for all of us were short-winded enough by that time. Peter Murdock flipped the ball to me when it went up again. I passed it under Marshall's guard to Conway. Thirty seconds to play l Conway knew his limitations. He dared not try for the basket unless he could get in closer, which would be a very lo11g chance. He passed back again. The Sewell center caught the ball and threw it to the other end of the court-a nice shot-but Peter Murdock was in like a Hash of lightning to catch it and race back. fl'age 231