When Gonzaga sports fans look back on 2007, undoubtedly they will first think of the things they'd rather forget.
Phrases like "psychedelic mushrooms," "possession" and "suspended indefinitely" will stir up painful memories. Thoughts on Year One A.A. (After Adam) will only arouse visions of missed opportunities and failed expectations. On the surface, it would seem like the legacy of 2007 was that it would only be remembered for what went wrong.
But don't do it.
Don't give in to that temptation.
To do so would mean to forget the great accomplishments of 2007. It would mean to overlook just how special 2007 really was to many of our Bulldog men and women, and how much their achievements only reinforce what we love about Gonzaga sports.
Who could forget about the emergence of the women's basketball team? The Bulldogs caught fire at the end of last season, losing only one regular season game after January and advancing to their first NCAA Tournament. They've been even hotter this year. Bringing in versatile freshman point guard Courtney Vandersloot and redshirts Tiffanie Shives and Janelle Bekkering, the Bulldogs have been a gunslinging team, averaging 84 points per game en route to a 4-1 record. Credit the amazing job Kelly Graves did of bringing this team together and getting them to buy into the team concept. He now has himself a budding powerhouse, and the most successful and exciting Bulldog team of 2007.
Who could forget about the long-overdue homecoming of the baseball team? With the opening of Patterson Baseball Complex and Washington Trust Field, the Bulldogs finally have a home again, after years of being in a sort of exile at Avista Stadium. More than just creating one of the best atmospheres for watching college baseball in the Northwest, the stadium gave Gonzaga back its baseball team, as fans were able to proudly watch as the Bulldogs delivered a winning record in their first year back on campus.
Who could forget about the men's soccer team's wild ride? A schizophrenic season in which the Bulldogs seemed both Jekyll (beating defending-champs UC-Santa Barbara) and Hyde (a 1-4-3 stretch to end the season) climaxed with an improbable berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Who could forget about the power the women's soccer team showed this year? The Bulldogs finished 12-7-1, tying the team record for wins. And although they came back down to Earth in conference play, you'd be hard-pressed to find a more exciting period this year than the Bulldogs' record-breaking eight-game unbeaten streak.
And even with the pitfalls of last spring, who could forget about the new-look Bulldogs of late 2007? Austin Daye and company are quickly showing that their fans should let go of the apathy and bitterness from last year and embrace this new team.
Gene Hackman said it best in "Hoosiers": "I would hope you'd support who we are, not who we are not." In 2007, Bulldog teams across the sports spectrum showed who they are, showed their commitment, strength and perseverance.
That truly is Gonzaga. These were your teams.
Gonzaga isn't off-court mishaps and disappointments, no matter how easy it may be to allow those to be the focus of this past year. The Bulldog spirit that Gonzaga truly loves was there in 2007.
All you have to do is remember.
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