Still Standing

September 11, 2006

In a roughly 50-hour span this past weekend, I attended eight separate athletic contests on campus. I go to a slew of Hoya games, but that is a lot even for me. And I didn't make it to yet another three home contests that were held within the same time period. (And I hope the members of our athletic game management and operations staff are still standing as another week begins.) I was doing what I usually do at games: meeting and greeting, taking a few photos, making introductions, and keeping the degrees of Georgetown separation to a minimum.

Today though is surely a day for solemn reflection. Twelve months ago, I posted an entry on these pages that remembered the four former Hoya athletes who died at the World Trade Center five years ago. So even as the events of the past weekend progressed, reminders of those lost lives and of the oneness of the human family kept recurring.

Katie Devaney '09 in action versus Robert Morris

On the gridiron, our defense played a whale of a game - a shutout in fact. They were led by senior football co-captain Alex Buzbee, who found himself double-teamed all afternoon, but still finished with nine tackles on the day, including a quarterback sack. Alex wears No. 35, a living memorial to his numerical predecessor, Joe Eacobacci, who perished on that fateful day, now universally known as 9/11. The New York Times did a nice story in last Saturday's paper on the Buzbee-Eacobacci connection.

On the following day, at the field hockey match, I spied Hoyas Unlimited president and fan, Maura Devaney, whose daughter Katie had defended well in a hard-fought victory.

As I greeted Maura, I recalled the family-like relationship that the Devaneys shared with the Shea clan who lost their Hoya husband and father, Joe at the WTC. Seeing her at Georgetown cheering on her daughter on the eve of 9/11 reminded me that we best honor the memory of lost ones by making new memories -- keep on keeping on and never giving up: perseverance, a virtue we aspire to instill through athletics.

Hoya midfielder Deirdre McShea '08, daughter of John McShea '77

Lacrosse defenseman Brennan Kelly '09, son of Steve Kelly '77

When I departed Kehoe for North Kehoe and the two Sunday afternoon soccer games, I bumped into sophomore Brennan Kelly of the men's lacrosse team. He and a few of his teammates had worked the sidelines of the hockey game. The encounter made me reflect on two of his teammates, brothers David and Steve Bauer, who had lost their father in the attack in New York City. Over the summer, David had helped to initiate Hoya Dreams, a new service program for all varsity Georgetown athletes. Again, a related Jesuitical concept: we pay homage and give honor through our deeds.

I asked Brennan if he knew junior Deirdre McShea from Philadelphia, a member of the field hockey team he had just watched play. He replied that he did not. When I told him that he should, because their respective fathers were classmates and rowed on the Georgetown crews, I realized that I was preaching a message all too familiar. And that message brought me back to a feeling all Americans shared during the days and weeks following 9/11:

We are one.

More weekend snapshots from the Georgetown family photo album: Rory Coakley '82 and daughter Maggie, freshman midfielder on the field hockey team

Dave Goracy '71 and son Nick '18, on the sidelines for every Hoya football game, again sponsored the annual post-game gathering to kick-off the season

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Players Mentioned

#89 Alex Buzbee: Defensive End; 6' 4"; Sophomore

#26 Dave Bauer: M; 6' 1"; Senior

#27 Steve Bauer: D; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#49 Brennan Kelly: D; 6' 2"; Sophomore

#15 Katie Devaney: Forward; 5' 5"; Freshman

#31 Deirdre McShea: Midfield; 5' 8"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#89 Alex Buzbee
: 6' 4"; Sophomore
: Defensive End

#26 Dave Bauer
: 6' 1"; Senior
: M

#27 Steve Bauer
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: D

#49 Brennan Kelly
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: D

#15 Katie Devaney
: 5' 5"; Freshman
: Forward

#31 Deirdre McShea
: 5' 8"; Sophomore
: Midfield