On Saturday afternoon, the Milford High School softball team completed one of the most exciting playoff runs from a high school team I’ve had the good fortune to watch. “Congratulations” sounds kind of weak after the wins this team compiled, but I suppose it will have to do.
These Bucs join the ranks of four other MHS teams that won state crowns this year: football, wrestling and boys’ track and field in DIAA Division II, and competition cheerleading in the Eastern Cheer Association’s co-ed varsity division — which they immediately one-upped by winning the division’s national title. Without question, this has been the best year for Milford school athletics in recent memory, if not ever.
That’s more than a run of good luck. It’s a testament to the skill and team spirit of the athletes and coaches on each of those teams. MHS isn’t the biggest school in Division II, and while its athletics are no slouch, it’s not a factory school either. We don’t have the sheer numbers that some schools can muster, but as we can all see, numbers aren’t everything.
It’s also a testament to the way the athletics program in Milford is run and the kind of people it attracts. The coaches in this program don’t fight over the stars. Instead, as wrestling coach Don Parsley and football coach Mike Tkach will gladly tell you, they work together to help their student athletes bring out the best in themselves. And it shows in the number of students we see excel in multiple sports throughout the year.
Just for starters, Chris Drummond was a star on both the football and wrestling teams, while Brandon LeGrand was a force both on the gridiron and the basketball court. Jalil Davis was a major contributor for the wrestling, football and track teams. Nikki Parsley is a star in field hockey and on the softball diamond. Star pitcher Janée Williams is a top scorer on the basketball court.
Some even split time between two teams in the same season. Patrick Helmick and Sara Kolobielski made the postseason on the baseball and softball teams, respectively, but they were also running track. The list goes on and on.
And it’s not just the high school — Milford Middle School’s baseball and softball teams put together stunning seasons, with just one loss between the two of them. Clearly the entire district is doing something right, not just the high school.
So congratulations not just to the incredibly talented athletes who made history, but to the coaches, faculty and district staff who made it possible. We couldn’t ask for better.
— David LaRoss
News Editor
Milford, Del. —
