Tag Archives: undefeated season

Why Fear Perfection?

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By Kaleb Page

March 16, 2015

In the world of sports the chase for a perfect season is something few have the actual chance to achieve. While the realistic goal is to reach and win a championship in whatever sport it might be; there seems to be the notion that undefeated is nearly impossible.

However, when the stars align in the sports world and a team does have the chance to go undefeated a new dilemma takes hold.

This dilemma being should we lose at least once to get it out-of-the-way, should we even bring up the fact that we are undefeated or can we be careful enough to hold on to the record we have.

This dilemma was shown with teams like the Patriots, Uconn women’s basketball, Wichita St. men’s basketball, etc. by many different media outlets. Now rises a new member to this club, the 2014-15 Kentucky Wildcats men’s basketball team.

This edition of the Wildcats basketball team has the familiar feel of years past. A roster full of lottery picks and a fiery head coach that leads this team to become a fine tuned machine. This team currently sits at 31-0 going into its conference tournament after a season that saw many nail bitter moments for this talented squad.

An article on Fox Sports asked what if after this weekend Kentucky came away 31-1. The reporter (Reid Forgrave) said popular opinion across the country would be that a loss now is what Kentucky needs in order to win it all in the end.

Forgrave however, had the gut feeling to think it was ‘hogwash’ for a team with that much talent to suddenly feel any different with a loss than it did undefeated. I agree with this statement completely.

I know as humans we all feel pressure one way or another. Another thing, as all of us know, is that we know what we are in and what the implications are. Which for this team they know of all the hype and the implications of this historic run they are on. This team, that could run the table for the first time since 1976 (Indiana), definitely knows what is out there to be had.

While head coach John Calipari wants to make the team focus on the task at hand, there is always the knowledge of what can be accomplished in the back of their minds. If I’m on Kentucky I am embracing this record and embracing the chance to make history. ‘Why not us’ should be the mantra for this team going forward.

If you truly want to be the dominant team that will be remembered for decades to come; you have to go and take down this task.

Don’t shy away, don’t back down and don’t you dare think about taking that loss to get the prize at the end.

When it’s all said and done, why fear perfection?

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Minnesota’s Historic Season Goes Unnoticed

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BY LORI RAUDIO

This past Sunday, the University of Minnesota Gophers women’s hockey team made history. Not only did they win their second straight NCAA Championship, but they completed a perfect season (41-0-0). If you only catch the sports headlines, however, you probably didn’t even know women’s hockey was having its tournament.

What the Gophers did is no small feat and they are the first women’s hockey team to complete an undefeated season. Despite their success, there was little to no mention of the team in the media. It wasn’t covered on Sportscenter or any other major sports network, but it was covered online by ESPN’s female counterpart, espnW. The article did make ESPN’s homepage, but only at the very bottom of the page.

Sportscenter doesn’t show many NHL hockey highlights, so women’s hockey coverage is pretty much non-existent. Many other media outlets also chose to ignore this story, as it was overshadowed by March Madness, the Miami Heat’s win streak, and Tiger Woods regaining his world ranking. The Gophers’ accomplishments are a rare achievement and at least deserved some acknowledgement.

This echoes issues raised in my previous article about Brittney Griner and problems in women’s sport. It seems to be a never ending cycle. Women’s sports are seen as less competitive and exciting so the media doesn’t report on them very much. People who rely on these media outlets for news don’t hear about women’s teams or even know they exist. Therefore, women’s sports are silenced and ignored, unable to gain popularity.

It’s a shame the Gophers didn’t receive more recognition for their achievements. Their undefeated season is something no men’s team has done since 1970. These women, and other female athletes in every sport, are achieving exciting things, and the media needs to step up and give them the respect they deserve.