Bernie Fratto

Inside the Frattohouse 

by
Bernie 
Fratto

 
The stuff legends
are made of
Lots of teams have won
one in a row
-John Wooden

June 8, 2008

When Northville defeated Novi in regional soccer action last week, ending the ‘Cats 3-year reign, I am convinced they believed they would run the table and capture a State Championship.

And that’s understandable given the fact they were a terrific team that was very well coached. But a funny thing happened on the way to the Promised Land…They found out the dynamic of winning a championship vs. simply being good enough to win a championship are not the same thing.

This makes the accomplishments of the Novi High School Girl's Soccer team all the more amazing. No matter what anybody says or thinks about this special group of young women, no one can ever take away the fact they captured not just one, not two, but three consecutive State Championships!

This season there were many teams that casual observers predicted would win the Division I State title fight. Those mentioned included Troy Athens, Rochester, Ann Arbor Pioneer, Brighton and of course Northville just to name a few.

All of them are now out of the playoffs. The truth is that any one of them might well have won the title this season which once again underscores the point that winning one time is difficult in itself, much less the proverbial ‘three-peat.’

Add to the fact the 'Cats won a 4th consecutive KVC crown this season, and were District Champions for the 4th straight season, and you have the stuff legends are made of.

I use the word legend because ‘legend’ is defined as a collection of stories about a person or persons that are admirable.

There are stories that will be told and tales that will be spun about this team for years to come, but know this; What they did has such a high degree of difficulty and improbability that it’s going to take a long time for people to truly appreciate and comprehend their unprecedented achievements.

Since March 2005 this entity known as Novi Girl's Soccer has provided thrills, adventure, fun, and a high-value proposition to a school and community that benefited greatly from their efforts.

Tomorrow is not promised to anybody, and in hindsight hopefully fair-minded people will see that even though these kids weren’t perfect, they were special and the good outweighs the bad by a ton.

These kids truly were, and are, the stuff legends are made of…

(c) 2008 Novi Information Network
www.novi.org

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Bernie Fratto is a freelance writer, radio personality, and motivational speaker.  His passion for sports comes in part from his experience as a former Cincinnati Red farm- hand.  "Behind every sports story lies the hearts and minds of real human beings" said Fratto.  "These athletic endeavors often serve as a metaphor for the game we call life."

Bernie is also on the broadcast team at Live 97.1FM talk-radio, and is a frequent co-host on the popular "Parker & The Man Show," a nightly sportstalk show which airs Monday-Friday from 7-11pm.