A miltary mess: Eagle Newspapers'
Camillus Advocate reported last week on a very awkward situation in which a soccer star at Jordan-Elbridge has had her senior season ruined by a decision that seems cold-hearted at best.
Kristen Raeon, 17, who scored 100 goals in four varsity seasons beginning in 2003 and scored twice in the '06 Empire State Games, made a decision during her junior year to follow her two brothers into the military, and the story says she informed varsity coach Al Maxian that her basic training at Fort Jackson in South Carolina this summer would cause her to miss the first two weeks of soccer practice.
As per standards set by the state's education department, the NYSPHSAA requires players to participate in eight practices before they can suit up for a game, so Raeon knew she was going to have to miss as much as the first three weeks of the regular season. In that respect, she was not unlike South Seneca football player Stephen Brewer, who ran into similar restrictions after completing miltary training over the summer.
The difference is that Brewer was welcomed back to South Seneca with the proverbial open arms. By contrast, Raeon was practically thrown on the scrap heap. According to the report, the player says she was told by the coach that she could not come out for the team because it would be unfair to the other players.
A cynic might note that the other players might welcome the help. J-E started the season 0-5 with only three goals scored.
Raeon, also an above-average track athlete, went so far as to trying to reschedule final exams last spring so that she could move up her training schedule in South Carolina, but that didn't work out.
According to the paper, Raeon returned home Sept. 5 and sought out Maxian. This time, she says, the coach told her that the majority of the season would be over by the time she made up the required practices and that she would not be allowed into the starting lineup even after gaining her eligibility.
J-E Superintendent Marilyn Dominick seems to be walking a tight rope by saying she's supportive of the player and finds her military commitment laudable. She's been careful not to take sides against her coach, though she did say, "The district or myself at no time told her she could not play for the team. She’s a wonderful girl."
That doesn't quite wash. There seems to be a huge restriction being placed on the player.
J-E should stop dancing around the issue. Either come out and say Raeon has to be penalized for the missed time with the team (or for whatever other transgressions there might have been) or else ditch the completely arbitrary additional restrictions that would keep her out of the starting lineup. She's at least as good as any other player J-E has, and it's not like she blew off the first two weeks of practice in order to lay on a beach.
Extra points: Everyone else is playing for second this fall when it comes to the top individual accomplishment in field hockey. Pittsford Mendon junior Mary Nikish, normally a defender, scored four goals in a five-minute span Thursday as the Vikings beat Gates Chili's first-year varsity team, 10-0. . . . If you've been watching the Women's World Cup at insanely early hours of the day on ESPN, you may recognize U.S. superstar Abby Wambach. She was a star at Our Lady of Mercy in Section 5 in the mid-1990s and also dabbled successfully on the basketball court.
