THEY DID BELIEVE!

3/11/07 Andy Hill

The sign someone placed on the north end of Hap Jones Field House on Saturday afternoon summed it up.  Much like the signs on Batts Drugs, Lester's Income Tax, and other businesses along Commerce Street.  Two simple English language words.  "We Believe".  Nothing extraordinary in that is there?  Slogans are mere words unless the team adopting the slogan truly lives it.  It must become a part of you just as the very DNA that defines who you are.  In short, to be a true slogan--it becomes you.  It becomes a mission that one focuses on despite all the turmoil and difficulty surrounding them.  Despite seemingly insurmountable odds, the Lady Red Devils had the courage to stay the course and continue to believe on Saturday morning.  General George S. Patton once said "Courage is fear holding on a minute longer."    By now you have read the newspaper accounts of this dramatic game and read the players themselves indicate they were scared.   But the fundamental belief in their slogan would carry them through their darkest hour and the fear became the courage to overcome.  What happened in the last 6:30 of the state championship basketball game against an outstanding Landmark Christian War Eagle squad ranks among the greatest comebacks in the history of Georgia high school basketball championships.  Down 16 points with 6:40 to play "fear" had engulfed the entire Red Devil nation and particularly those in attendance to cheer on their beloved Lady Red Devils.  Admit it--you had virtually given up hope.  I had too.  There, I said it.  Everything seemed to be unraveling.  Very few, if any, Devil fans in attendance thought we had any chance whatsoever to pull the game out.  But remember, we didn't adopt the slogan--we didn't live the slogan through the season.   I had actually started circling the senior's numbers in the program because we wanted to have some kind words about their contributions before we left the air. Although still cheering loudly, deep down nearly everyone seemed to be reconciled to be a runner-up............except that bunch wearing Red, White, and Blue uniforms and red tee shirts with the slogan emblazed on the backs and led by the cool and calm Shelva Lester and fiery assistant Cliff Royal.  One historical note here---Coach Lester had been down this road before.  In 1989 she and Maldonado, Whitehead et al were down to Pelham and scored an unthinkable 23 consecutive points to pull out a championship.  If there was one person in the Coliseum who knew the unthinkable was possible--it was Coach Shelva Lester.

 The first half of the contest was one sided.  Coach Lester indicated during a television interview that "we were out hustled in the first half."  The Lady War Eagles displayed smothering full court pressure that stymied the Devils and forced them into a large number of turnovers.  I believe the Lady Red Devil players themselves will tell you they were flat out played and whipped in that first half.  Only the Devil players and coaches will truly know what happened in that dressing room at halftime.  Newspaper accounts say there were tears in the dressing room at half.  Coach Lester's message was pretty simple--we are not playing our style and tempo of basketball.  She reinforced that they had only played one half and there were still sixteen minutes of basketball left to play.  We were down 14 points and our marquee player was in foul trouble with three fouls.  It doesn't get much more bleak than that.  There was one silver lining--the War Eagles had shot poorly from the free throw line and only had an eight person squad.  Had they made just a few more of their free throws they would have had a much larger lead.  The Devils had actually been down by 20 before cutting it to a "mere" 14 points at half.  Out of synch.  Out hustled.  Out everything.  But they clung tightly to their adopted slogan.  Remember--"We Believe."   With everything going against them, if there was ever a time to abandon the slogan--this was it.  As they emerged from the locker room the Devil faithful rose to their collective feet to cheer and support their Lady Devils.  Fear was holding on--but for how long?

 The third quarter saw the Devils start to get more into their rhythm but still could make little headway into the sizeable Landmark lead.  They were breaking the full court pressure more consistently but still could not get Cierra Durhart "dialed in" offensively.  She had a mere five points thru three quarters of play.  The Lady Devils would actually outscore the War Eagles in the third quarter but only by a mere 9-8 margin.  Their efforts had increased.  They were not being out hustled.  Still, they could not cut into that lead.  With a mere eight minutes to go the Lady Devils trailed by an thirteen point margin.  Just to remind you of how bleak it was I snapped this grainy photo of the scoreboard during the quarter break. 

One of the oldest clichés in sports is the saying, "Great players make great plays (or play great) in big games."  Red Devil sports history has dozens of examples to prove the above statement.  Some of the more recent great players in other sports were actually in attendance to cheer on their alma mater.  On a personal note, I have always considered Nicole Collins' "Jesse Owens" type performance in the 1991 Track & Field Championships to be among the greatest athletic performances in the history of the school.  She won three events and and set state records in the process.  Some of her records still stood as of last spring.  With some help from long distance runner Chrissy Clements, the Lady Devils captured the Class A Girls Track Championship with Nicole scoring nearly every point.  With the Lady Devils down by thirteen, the Devils great player, Cierra Duhart, was going to have to step up if the Devils had any chance to pull off the miracle comeback.  Was this her time?

 The fourth quarter started and still there was no momentum swinging play at the outset.  When Tiffany Hall scored on a beautifully designed cut play with 6:43 remaining in the game the lead was stretched back to sixteen points at 43-27.  Duhart and Breanna Colson scored quick baskets and Landmark took a quick timeout.  Down by twelve the Devils were still not out of it.  On the radio we remarked that if we could get the lead into single digits anything could happen.  Remember--"We Believe."  In the Devil huddle, intense expressions had replaced the helpless looks of just a few moments earlier.  Out of the timeout, Kendra Roberts made two clutch free throws and then quickly Cierra scored a driving basket.  Finally, the Devils had the lead inside of double digits and it was "game on"!  With the Devils now utilizing full court pressure they forced an offensive charging foul in the back court with 4:52 remaining.  It was at this point the assistant coach Cliff Royal, sitting directly across from me, came out of his seat clapping his hands briskly and extolling the Lady Devils onward.  In fact the whole bench came up.  It was at this moment that 'ole lady luck' along with her boyfriend 'momentum' rushed to their respective dressing rooms and donned the red, white, and blue colors of the Lady Devils and discarded the blue and gold of Landmark.  You could just sense something amazing was about to take place. The two teams exchanged points, Duhart made a beautiful save of a ball headed out of bounds that resulted in points, but the War Eagles increased the lead back to three.  Then Cierra cut it back to one at the 1:17 mark with a great drive to the basket.  Remember--"We Believe."   A motivational book titled '212' speaks of how at 211F degrees water is merely hot water.  But at 212F water boils and creates steam.  Steam creates energy and can drive locomotives.  The message is that the difference between ordinary and outstanding sometimes is just another degree of effort.  The Devils were about to boil over!   With every Red Devil fan in attendance now screaming encouragement, the Lady Devils were poised to finish a most improbable comeback.  After a missed free throw by Landmark, Duhart drove the right side for a lay-up and to give the Devils their first lead and was fouled in the process.  Durhart made the free throw and the Devils had a two point lead.  The Devil faithful were going wild in the stands.  Christian Hunnicutt missed a shot with ten seconds and Duhart got the rebound and was fouled.  Durhart now had fourteen points in the fourth quarter.  If she could make these two free throws the Devils would have a four point lead and essentially the victory.  With the crowd now completely bonkers, she calmly strolled to the line.  Nothing but net on the first one!  "String Music" as famous announcer Joe Dean used to call it.  Coach Waller of Landmark called a timeout both to set up a three point play and in an attempt to ice Duhart.  As the Devils came back onto the court senior Elcia Holmes was already in tears--visibly.  Out of the timeout Durhart, a future Jacksonville State Gamecock, once again nailed the free throw.  We needed both as Hunnicutt hit a long three pointer at the buzzer.  The Lady Red Devils had come from sixteen points behind with 6:43 remaining in the game.  Complete pandemonium reigned as the Devil players, coaches, and cheerleaders along with a sizeable contingent of news media rushed the court to celebrate the win.  Fear had completed its transformation into courage.

About that old cliché concerning great players.  Cierra Duhart scored sixteen of her twenty one points in the fourth quarter with the state championship on the line.  She scored the last seven Devil points in the final 1:17 of the game.  Showing nerves of steel and a very mature composure, she made two of the most clutch free throws in the history of Hawkinsville basketball.  Where her performance along with the performance of her teammates and coaches in that fourth quarter ranks in history is left up to each one's own opinion.  I will give you mine.  With all due respect to the great ones like Nicole Collins, Melvin Borum, Rodney Collins, Todd Coley, Jeremy Marshall, Jermaine Collins, Charles Johnson, Mamie Ceniza, Shelva Lester and many others;......... you have company.

 These seniors were freshmen when the Lady Devils won their last championship in 2004.  Prior to the game and also early in the game we remarked on the radio that this group had one bookend championship as freshmen.  It was only fitting that they get that matching bookend championship to close out their careers.  The Lady Red Devils have won three basketball championships and this senior group has played an integral part in two of them.

 I have tried to think of words other than their now famous slogan that describe this team.  No quit seems to work.  Courage--certainly they displayed that.  Class--without a doubt.   Tenacity--sure.  But I will finish by using the one word that will never be forgotten.  As the years go by and the subject of "that scrappy bunch of 2007 Lady Red Devils" comes up, many different phrases will be used to describe them.  But the one that everyone will always remember.  Always.......................CHAMPIONS!

 To the seniors, thank you for your contribution to Hawkinsville Lady Red Devil basketball during your careers.  Your leadership yesterday at the Macon Coliseum will long be remembered by Devil fans in every corner of the globe.  Godspeed in your future endeavors.

 "We Believe"......................yes, they did!