St. Jude eighth grade boys basketball team first-time state champions
St. Jude eighth grader Eamon Lynch runs through a group of supporters prior to the beginning of the Class 8-1A final Thursday, Feb. 20. St. Jude defeated West Lincoln Broadwell from Lincoln to win the state championship. (Daryl Wilson/St. Jude)
The St. Jude Catholic School eighth grade boys basketball team are state champions for the first time in the school’s history.
They won the title in convincing fashion at the Illinois Elementary School Association (IESA) Class 8-1A finals Thursday, Feb. 20 at Warrensburg-Latham High School in Warrensburg.
St. Jude prevailed over the squad from West Lincoln Broadwell 38-21.
“Our approach with this team since they were fifth graders has been really pretty simple – be Christ-like.” – St. Jude’s eighth grade basketball coach, Jim Lynch
“Congratulations to Coach (Jim) Lynch for a beautiful victory to cap off so many hours of work with our boys for years now,” said St. Jude principal Sister Mary André Thelen, O.P. “The team has been a special group of kids who showed both athleticism and virtue.”
NEW STATE DEFENSIVE RECORD
St. Jude set a new IESA Class 8-1A State Finals record – Fewest Points Allowed, Tournament (3 games): 58. The previous record was 83.
St. Jude seventh grader Brady Miller guards a West Lincoln Broadwell player during the Class 8-1A final Thursday, Feb. 20. (Daryl Wilson/St. Jude)
That works out to a per-game average of only 19 points scored against St. Jude by the strongest teams in the state.
Still, while celebrating the team’s success, as a Catholic school principal and professed religious, Sister Mary André views athletic achievement in terms of the broader context of human formation, and progress in the life of grace.
SPORTS AS ARENA FOR VIRTUE
“Sports are an arena for kids to practice virtues of patience, perseverance, humility, loyalty, courtesy, self-control – and many more,” she said.
Coach Lynch is fully onboard with this virtue-first perspective. “Our approach with this team since they were fifth graders has been really pretty simple – be Christ-like,” he said.
SIMPLE BEHAVIOURS, WONDERFUL EXAMPLES
Sister Mary André added, “Jim and our other coaches have drilled shooting, passing, and dribbling, but they have also emphasized playing with virtue and regularly attending Mass as a team before practices.”
“From simple behaviors like picking up players who have fallen to thanking officials after games, we just want them to be wonderful examples of their faith, families and St. Jude Catholic School,” Coach Lynch said.
St. Jude’s eighth grade basketball team finished with a win-loss record of 28-2.
St. Jude eighth grade boys basketball state champions and the St. Jude cheerleaders pose under the scoreboard showing the game result after the Class 8-1A final Thursday, Feb. 20. (Nhora Strickler/St. Jude)
