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Marquette grad defends her case
Dana Gregory/For the Daily Democrat
(Sports Editor's note: Dana Gregory is a 2004 graduate of Marquette High School where she shined on defense in volleyball and basketball. She played basketball at Iowa Wesleyan College and graduated from there this past May. She is the daughter of Lin and Larry Gregory.)
As a passionate sport's fanatic, I have either participated in or become a viewer of almost every sport out there. I tried nearly all sports my high school had to offer and played volleyball at the collegiate level while working in a Sports Information job that kept me on my toes, learning and observing all of the other sporting activities going on.
Through my years I have had an eye opening experience that I began to notice in high school, was confirmed in college, and stands out even more now that I am an observer: Defense is underrated!
In high school I was part of both an offensive and defensive position in volleyball, but noticed how offense got all of the attention. Even bringing a designated defensive position into the game at libero has not stopped people from paying more attention to the big kill leaders and offensive players. I watch the high school athletes each year get overlooked on their defensive skills and amazing plays that bring people to their feet and change the momentum of the game. When it comes down to interviewing for the newspaper or selecting the all area teams filled with the top performers for the year, you don't see too many players get selected based on their defensive skills. The first thing many people look for when they open the newspaper or read the headlines on ESPN is how many hits a player had, how many points a player scored, how many kills a hitter had or how many touchdowns someone scored. It seems to be all about the offense, yet people are forgetting the other half of the game - DEFENSE! No one ever asks how many steals did you have, did you take any charges, have any tackles, make any great digs or throw out all the runners?
Defense is a form of protection in a sporting event that helps the team hold off an attack by the opponent. It keeps the harm of a defeat at distance. It sounds important and its said to win championships, yet the players who are the top defenders do not get the credit they deserve. I have lived through this as a libero in college, setting records at the collegiate level for digs, but when it comes time to select players of the week or all conference teams, there can be 15 people on a first team and only one defensive player selected out of those 15 spots.
It seems to me like only the offensive statistics are taken into consideration and if this is the case then why even bother to keep track of blocks, tackles, steals, offensive fouls taken, digs or designate strict defensive positions when they do not seem to matter when it comes right down to it.
Sure offense has its perks. Everyone loves to see their favorite player get a big hit, score a lot of points, throw the big touchdown pass or slam the ball down for a point, but what happens when the offense has an off night? Grinnell College men's basketball team is a prime example of a run-and-gun, all about offense type of team throwing up 100-plus points a game. When they are not scoring lights out on offense chances are they are not winning because they do not stress the aspect of defense to back them up.
Defense gets a lot of talk but only a small amount of action in the form of recognition. Let us not forget the defensive aspect of the game for it makes it a lot more of an “on the edge of your seat” type of experience.
Defense wins games and championships which are supposed to be the greatest accomplishments in sports. The Top 10 Plays on ESPN tend to be great defensive plays; a blocked goal in a soccer shootout in overtime, a stolen ball that leads to a fast break in basketball, an interception that gives the offense a chance to score, an amazing dig that keeps the play going or a snow cone catch to end an inning. All of these things seem to have one common element: They give opportunity for the offense to thrive and do their job.
Do not forget about the defensive aspect of the game because without it there would be no offense. Let us take the time to realize the importance and meaning behind the famous cheer “DEE-Fense, DEE-Fense, DEE-Fense” and give credit where credit is due.
(Sports Editor's note: Dana Gregory is a 2004 graduate of Marquette High School where she shined on defense in volleyball and basketball. She played basketball at Iowa Wesleyan College and graduated from there this past May. She is the daughter of Lin and Larry Gregory.)
As a passionate sport's fanatic, I have either participated in or become a viewer of almost every sport out there. I tried nearly all sports my high school had to offer and played volleyball at the collegiate level while working in a Sports Information job that kept me on my toes, learning and observing all of the other sporting activities going on.
Through my years I have had an eye opening experience that I began to notice in high school, was confirmed in college, and stands out even more now that I am an observer: Defense is underrated!
In high school I was part of both an offensive and defensive position in volleyball, but noticed how offense got all of the attention. Even bringing a designated defensive position into the game at libero has not stopped people from paying more attention to the big kill leaders and offensive players. I watch the high school athletes each year get overlooked on their defensive skills and amazing plays that bring people to their feet and change the momentum of the game. When it comes down to interviewing for the newspaper or selecting the all area teams filled with the top performers for the year, you don't see too many players get selected based on their defensive skills. The first thing many people look for when they open the newspaper or read the headlines on ESPN is how many hits a player had, how many points a player scored, how many kills a hitter had or how many touchdowns someone scored. It seems to be all about the offense, yet people are forgetting the other half of the game - DEFENSE! No one ever asks how many steals did you have, did you take any charges, have any tackles, make any great digs or throw out all the runners?
Defense is a form of protection in a sporting event that helps the team hold off an attack by the opponent. It keeps the harm of a defeat at distance. It sounds important and its said to win championships, yet the players who are the top defenders do not get the credit they deserve. I have lived through this as a libero in college, setting records at the collegiate level for digs, but when it comes time to select players of the week or all conference teams, there can be 15 people on a first team and only one defensive player selected out of those 15 spots.
It seems to me like only the offensive statistics are taken into consideration and if this is the case then why even bother to keep track of blocks, tackles, steals, offensive fouls taken, digs or designate strict defensive positions when they do not seem to matter when it comes right down to it.
Sure offense has its perks. Everyone loves to see their favorite player get a big hit, score a lot of points, throw the big touchdown pass or slam the ball down for a point, but what happens when the offense has an off night? Grinnell College men's basketball team is a prime example of a run-and-gun, all about offense type of team throwing up 100-plus points a game. When they are not scoring lights out on offense chances are they are not winning because they do not stress the aspect of defense to back them up.
Defense gets a lot of talk but only a small amount of action in the form of recognition. Let us not forget the defensive aspect of the game for it makes it a lot more of an “on the edge of your seat” type of experience.
Defense wins games and championships which are supposed to be the greatest accomplishments in sports. The Top 10 Plays on ESPN tend to be great defensive plays; a blocked goal in a soccer shootout in overtime, a stolen ball that leads to a fast break in basketball, an interception that gives the offense a chance to score, an amazing dig that keeps the play going or a snow cone catch to end an inning. All of these things seem to have one common element: They give opportunity for the offense to thrive and do their job.
Do not forget about the defensive aspect of the game because without it there would be no offense. Let us take the time to realize the importance and meaning behind the famous cheer “DEE-Fense, DEE-Fense, DEE-Fense” and give credit where credit is due.
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dale iwanicki wrote on Jun 25, 2008 1:52 AM: