An event easy to recall
My time as sports editor of this newspaper is fading.
With my last day of employment in this position set for June 28, now may be the appropriate time to describe the most memorable event I’ve ever covered for the Butler Eagle.
And for me, it’s a no-brainer.
The first round of the WPIAL football playoffs in 2011, Knoch hosting West Allegheny. The Knights won the game handily, 28-7. That was far from the entire story.
A popular cheerleader at Knoch and a Level 9 gymnast, Alex Summers was killed in a single-car accident four days before that game. Her boyfriend was standout Knights running back Andrew Rumburg-Goodlin. Her funeral was the morning of the game and the Knoch football team was in attendance.
For a bunch of high school kids to overcome an emotion-filled week to play a solid game in dispatching a West Allegheny team coached by WPIAL legend Bob Palko was amazing enough. Knoch coach Mike King and his staff did an amazing job keeping the team focused that week.
That’s one of the reasons King is in the Butler County Sports Hall of Fame.
But the postgame vigil in Alex’s memory trumped that effort.
Nobody left Knoch Stadium after the game. It was a packed house and absolutely no one left. Balloons were released in the air and a moment of silence in Alex’s memory turned into minutes.
People looked toward the sky. Nobody said a word. It was raw human emotion the likes of which I never experienced before or since.
When the silence ended, I remember talking to a tear-filled Rumburg-Goodlin — who rushed for more than 100 yards that night — about the game, his thoughts on Alex, the vigil, everything. He let it all out.
He could have easily declined that interview. He did not.
By this time, the game had been over for well over 30 minutes. I glanced at the far end zone and Coach Palko had his team gathered together, down on a knee, watching the proceedings.
I wandered over and asked Palko why he didn’t take his team to the locker room. He was given ample opportunity to do so earlier.
Paraphrasing his answer, Palko said something to the effect: “Our team lost a football game tonight. This community lost a whole lot more this week. They are coming together to deal with that loss. This is about life and using each other to handle tragedy, which is a part of life.
“I thought it was important for my team to see this.”
That’s a coach thinking beyond the game.
And that’s a night I will never forget.
John Enrietto is sports editor of the Butler Eagle
