A Legacy of Excellence On and Off the Field
By Derek Call ('08) and Mallory Nobile ('08)
Following a 1969 season in which the Golden Knights, King's club football team, finished 4-4, members hoped next season would be theirs. Jump ahead a year later, and the Golden Knights were National Champions. Other King's teams would continue the winning tradition long after the Golden Knights folded (just three years after their national title). While they may not always excel on the field, the values and teamwork athletes acquire under the influence of coaches and staff leave them all with a feeling of success. |
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Life Lessons
Broad guidelines for the development of student athletes on a personal, cultural, and spiritual level are in the college's mission statement. Every coach must follow these principles on his or her quest to teach responsibility, respect, and most importantly, academic excellence.
Softball coach Lisa Gigliello, who has led her team to six consecutive conference titles, stresses the importance of cooperative responsibility. She teaches her athletes how to take care of each other like family. “Many have told me,” she says, “that the lessons they learned while being on this team have had a positive impact on their personal and professional lives after King's.”
King's Cross Country coach Mike Kolinovski uses a similar approach. He says while he attended King's, he learned from his own coach to think situations through without jumping to conclusions. He believes this is an important life lesson, which is why he incorporates it into his coaching techniques.
Student athletes Dave Krupski and Anne Marie Drimones believe their participation helped them to learn balance. “The ability to be able to participate in a collegiate sport and have two majors means that I have got to be at top level both academically and athletically at all times,” Dave says. “This will help me tremendously when I get into the working world and have to balance life and work at the same time.”
Anne Marie, a member of the six-time Mid Atlantic Conference Champion softball team, says she's learned to work well with others, and she's developed a sense of dedication, accomplishment and self worth. Anne Marie is just one of many athletes who credit sports for their belief in self-efficacy--the ability to push themselves further.
Building the Future
King's coaches say the Athletic Department has worked hard to stay competitive with competing colleges through improvements to facilities such as the weight rooms. This has made training easier not only for athletes, but for all students and faculty.
Since its incarnation in 1946, King's College has prided itself on leaving a legacy of excellence with its students. Scholastic sports is one way it lives.
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