Days after his team fell in the state quarterfinals for the second straight year Clarkston varsity coach Dan Fife was still searching for answers. He appeared heartbroken, deflated and still searching for the right words to sum up his team’s 20-5 season.
‘Seems like the stars all need to be lined up just right to get by the quarters,? he said shaking his head. ‘We just didn’t get it done. We just have to roll up our sleeves and work harder.?
Clarkston’s second straight trip to the quarterfinals must’ve felt like d’j? vu all over again as for the second straight time his club fell to Flint Carman-Ainsworth 60-53.
One has to wonder if the score would’ve read differently had the Wolves? trio of Chris Johnston, Robbie Clark and Brad Goodman all not had three first-half fouls, many of which were said to be very questionable. But Fife didn’t comment on the officiating. Instead, the 22-year varsity coach simply said his program has got to improve from the bottom up, including himself.
‘We’ve got to get everybody, middle school, freshmen, JV and all of us who are in this thing to work harder. There’s not much to say after a game like that. It’s heartbreaking not to have the chance to go to Breslin,? he said.
Fife’s frustration, sadness or confusion was still apparent three days after the loss, but what was just as apparent as the drive to continue to march forward and achieve the ultimate goal of winning a state title as coach of the Wolves. Before that Fife would reflect on what his team had accomplished this season ? an OAA I league title, arguably the toughest league in the state, along with his 11th straight district title and his second straight regional title. No other group in Fife’s history has won consecutive regionals.
This season the Wolves entered the year with a bulls? eye right on the middle of their jerseys. People throughout the state were claiming the Wolves had just as good a chance as any to win a the state title in Class A.
‘When those kids stop and think about all they’ve accomplished, I don’t think for a second the think they were unsuccessful. The best lessons in sports are through the negative experiences. It’s all about how you react, and who you become.?
For the seniors on this team: Ryan Kaltz, Kyle Rademacher, Johnston, Mark Thonrberry, Chris Brookes and Chad Zelinski, they will never set foot on a high school gym floor as part of a Wolves team again. And that, might be the hardest of all for coach Fife.
‘I’ve been blessed as a coach here at Clarkston to coach so many good kids. We (at Clarkston) don’t have to put up with a lot of the other stuff other (coaches) do. The expectations of Clarkston athletes are pretty high. That makes our kids special. But for those seniors, what makes that last game especially tough is you lose those senior kids. You have a special bond with them. They’ll never be together again as a group. Sure, you have your good and your bad, but you always remember them. They may never feel like it, but when they leave that’s one of my kids, not my own sons, but it’s close.?
As much as Fife hates to lose his seniors, he might hate losing even more. He still complains about the loss to Pontiac Central back in the regular season. He hates losing any game, but also noted that only four teams in the state end the year happy (the four Class state champions).
‘I honestly thought we had a real good chance to get to Breslin,? he said. ‘But don’t feel sorry for me, or us. There’s no excuses. We just have got to get better. It (the state title) won’t and shouldn’t come easy.?
With the calendar flipping to April, Fife now has more time on his hands. And with it, an emptiness that can only be filled when next year’s team begins conditioning again.
‘Basketball just consumes my life. Our basketball kids play all but about six weeks of the year,? he said. ‘Now, there’s such a void. There’s no more phone calls. Yesterday I just went out and ran and thought about things. I won’t have to count laps for a bit now. I can just think and reflect.?