It’s October 26th! Why, that must mean it’s Paul Parrish’s birthday.
Paul Parrish is not just a dad. He’s also a former professor of British Literature at Texas A&M. He’s good. I mean, real good. Don’t let the decency and humility fool ya. The man knows his stuff. Quiz him about Shakespeare. Quiz him! I dare you. I know you won’t! What? You want to quiz me instead? Please don’t do that.
What’s it like growing up with a Shakespeare expert in the house? Something like this:
Dad: “What did you do at school today?” Me: “Nothing…….” Dad: “Nothing? Nothing? Nothing will come of nothing. Speak. Again.” (King Lear) Me: *rolls eyes* “Dad you’re such a nerd.”
Homecoming is just two weeks away in Sherman. I won’t make it this year; y’all have fun. The AC Women’s Basketball team kicks off their season in Sherman that weekend against Howard Payne.
Are you a fan of Coach Michelle Filander and AC women’s basketball? You should be. The Roos have won nearly 60 games over the past 3 seasons, and have secured two regular season conference championships in the process. Last year’s team put up 20 wins, the first time since the incredible 1997-99 teams that made it to the NAIA & NCAA tournament Round of 16. The 1997 team lost to the eventual national champion after a game winning three-point attempt was just off the mark.
D3Hoops released their All-American selections this week, and senior Roo Bryce Frank was named 2nd team All-American. Those of you who have yet to watch her play will be impressed when you finally do. Those of you who, like me, have already watched her on the court are scratching your heads wondering how she was overlooked for 1st team All-American.
I saw last year’s team fall to rival and WBB power Trinity down in San Antonio. In spite of the loss, AC stayed with the Tigers all game long. When the Tigers came to Sherman, AC got the better of them. Both teams ended the conference season at 13-1 and a shared conference co-championship. A third and final game awaited in the conference tournament finals in Colorado. It was an AC-Trinity “rubber” match to decide who got the bid for the NCAA D3 Tournament.
Man, that sounds like a time to bring out the Shakespeare, don’t it?
I wrote a little piece in anticipation of the conference finals between the two oldest Presbyterian schools in Texas. It included the Bard, Texas, Hamlet, Trinity, Macbeth, Austin College, even Roo and Shakespearian actor Aldo Billingslea. All that was needed was for AC to dispatch Southwestern in the semifinals and it would be posted.
The ball bounces in fully ways though. Southwestern upset the Roos in OT, and the season came to a very disappointing end. My drivel instead went sadly into the archives.
But that was last year. Time heals all, and hope springs eternal with each new season. I’m excited to follow another exceptional AC Women’s Basketball team in 2018-2019. Also, I just hate to let a piece of writing just go to waste.
So, in anticipation of the ACWBB season and to celebrate dear ol’ Dad, I’m dusting off last spring’s shelved draft. Last year I wrote about Shakespeare and the “rubber” match. This year I’d love to tie the Bard to the word “sweep.” Looks like AC is at Trinity on February 1st; I think my daughter and I can make that.
Go get ‘em this year Roos.
As for you Dad, happy birthday. Thank you for the positive, lifelong influence on my writing. “This is [your] birth-day; as this very day were you born.” Have a day of celebration and do whatever you wish. Just make sure it’s not “nothing.”
When the Roos play Trinity with this much at stake, it’s time to bring out the Bard himself.
“To die — to sleep. To sleep — perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub! For in that sleep of death what dreams may come.”
– Hamlet
The use of the word “rub” by William Shakespeare refers to an impediment or hindrance, in this case the loss of dreams in the event of suicide. The word “rub” dates back to 16th century England, and believe it or not comes from the world of sports.
A “rub” in English lawn bowling occurs when a tossed ball is diverted from its intended path by some deviation on the playing surface. The term has also made its way to the sport of golf in the phrase “rub of the green”. The word “rub” has traveled a long way from Elizabethan England by way of Scotland to Texas, just like the Scottish Presbyterianism of AC & Trinity itself.
The word “rub” has a cousin that also dates from 16th century English lawn bowling: “rubber”.
In sports, the phrase “rubber match” refers to a tie-breaking game in a best of three series. It likely evolved from the power of this pivotal game to “rub” the losing team from competition. Sources trace it to as far back as 1599, the same year as Hamlet.
Trinity relocated to Waxahachie in 1902, and the proximity to Sherman ignited the now 115-year old Presbyterian rivalry one year later. In April 1903, Roo baseball suited up for two games over two days against Trinity. It was the first ever meeting between the two schools on the athletic field. The Tigers took Game #1, and the Roos won Game #2. There was no rubber match.
That same year, baseball’s National League and American League joined forces to create one true champion from each of their respective pennant winners. Instead of a best-of-three with a rubber match, major league baseball decided on a best-of-nine. They called this new invention the “World Series.”
The AC and Trinity Women’s basketball teams are 2018 SCAC regular season co-champions with 13 conference wins each. They have both notched twenty win seasons, and are both nationally ranked. For AC, it’s the first season with 20 wins since the 1999 team that reached the NCAA D3 tournament.
Each school has only one conference loss. The Roos lost to Trinity in San Antonio. The Tigers fell to AC in Sherman. They meet a third time on Sunday in the finals of the SCAC tournament in Colorado.
How similar are Trinity & AC? Read this from the SCAC Tournament site:
“On the women’s side, Austin College and Trinity University finished in a tie atop the standings at 13-1. Since the two split their head-to-head match-ups and had no other losses in league play – neither head-to-head results nor working down the standings broke the tie. The third tiebreaker, results vs. common non-conference opponents at similar (home-away) site, could not break the tie either as the only common same site opponent was UT-Tyler and both won that game. Therefore, a coin toss was used to determine the No. 1 and No. 2 seed.”
The Austin College / Trinity rivalry is, to put it simply, the D3 version of the Longhorns and Aggies in the state of Texas. And guess what Roo fans? It’s rivalry game #3. We’ve got a “rubber” match.
For a Championship.
Shakespeare’s most famous play about the land of John Knox Presbyterianism was the tragedy MacBeth. On Sunday, this Roo will definitely be hoping for a lot of Austin College “double, doubles” and Trinity “toil and troubles.”
Since defeating the nationally ranked WashU Bears on their home court and winning the WashU tournament, the Roos are 19-1. I happened to catch that one loss down at Trinity. Their best player refused to miss, and left the court with more points scored in a game than any Trinity woman in history. But the Roos refused to fade that night. They fought and fought, waiting for an opportunity to steal a victory. Although that opportunity never came, at the time I wrote “this (Trinity) team can be beaten in Sherman.” Yup. One week later, their best player had come back down to earth and the Roos defeated the Tigers at Hughey.
It’s been fun to follow yet another tremendous season of AC women’s basketball. I don’t know what the outcome will be tomorrow, but I know that this team will fight to the very end. As Coach Filander’s squad take to the court a third time against the historic Austin College rival, it’s probably worth bringing out the Bard for a third time. While I can’t deliver the lines like Roo athlete & Shakespearean actor Aldo Billingslea, I can certainly pick the right one.
“Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more.” – Henry V
