Fan Speak Jan22

Smells like school spirit

I WAS surprised to see that there was nothing in the Jackson-Notre Dame basketball game article [in the Jan. 14 edition] that mentioned the school spirit that was on display. I haven't been to a high school game in a while and things have changed. The student sections put on a great show. The game was awesome. I can't wait for the rematch.

(That rematch won't take place until next season.)

One-sided story

LAST SUNDAY morning, I eagerly searched my copy of the Southeast Missourian for the story about the championship game of the Chester Invitational boys basketball tournament. You can imagine my disappointment when the entire article was about Saxony Lutheran. The article completely omitted the two Perryville players who made the all-tournament team, one of whom was named MVP of the tournament. As a subscriber to your paper, I follow all of the teams in Southeast Missouri, and I consider Perryville to be part of this region. I don't believe it is too late to rectify this omission, and I know that I and other Perryville subscribers would appreciate equitable treatment.

(We regret that the story published was incomplete. Usually, one coach calls in game results, and there is a saying about history being written by winners. Coaches are welcome to call after losses to verify information we've been given or to report games against teams from outside the area, but not all of those games and performances are reported to us.

As for the tournament honors, Rick Dunn of runner-up Perryville was named the MVP after scoring 60 points in three games, including 24 in the title game. Michael Fritsche also made the first-team after scoring 32 points in three games.)

Dog-gone truth

I ADMIRE Marty Mishow for the stories about Southeast Missouri State men's basketball, which are always uplifting whether it's a win or loss. But we all have to face it: Southeast will never have a good basketball team. They need to go back to Division II where they prospered and did well. I admire Mr. Mishow for always being on their side and making a positive out of a loss, but we all have to face that they're a dog.

Steamed up about MISL

WHY DOES the Southeast Missourian fail to mention the St. Louis Steamers or the Major Indoor Soccer League? Here's a pro team in St. Louis that's having a very successful season with a 9-3 record and in a first-place tie but receives no coverage at all. In the winter months, the Southeast Missourian always runs stories about the Blues hockey team or the Rams football team regardless of how worthless either team is or was this season. We even see many stories about the NBA, in which the closest team is about three hours away. People around this area may not be aware of the Steamers or the MISL because this paper fails to give them any coverage. In the Southeast Missouri area, where soccer is a very popular sport, why not run stories of our only local professional soccer team?