{"HeadlineLight14"/}Coach, Star should choose words carefully
Congratulations to the Marathon varsity boys soccer team for its Class C state quarterfinal win over Cooperstown in a well-played game. I was, however, disappointed to read the "spaz" quote (in Lapse costly for Redskins, Nov. 16) attributed to Marathon coach Chip Stewart.
My wife and I are fortunate to have four sons, one a player on the excellent Cooperstown team. Our first child was born prematurely at 24 weeks. He was diagnosed with cerebral palsy, including spastic quadriplegia.
We were part of his determined, 24/7 effort to deal with this condition and were further privileged to be introduced to the world of other children and adults with disabilities.
Therefore, I never let pass the casual use of words such as "spaz" or "retard." Coach Stewart, flushed with victory, may be excused in this case, but the inclusion of that phrase in the article was thoughtless.
_ Linden Summers, Cooperstown
{"HeadlineLight14"/}No. 13 was good for OHS boys
I would like to thank The Daily Star for its excellent coverage of the Oneonta varsity boys soccer season. This was a great team that should be very proud of its accomplishments.
Unfortunately, OHS came up a little short against a very good Marcellus team on Friday the 13th. Being the superstitious fool that I am, I also couldn't help but notice that the winning goal was scored by No. 13 Jon Schoonmaker of Marcellus. It also was eerily coincidental that Sean Murphy, who is No. 13 for Oneonta, was featured in the photo that accompanied that article.
The opening line in Rob Centorani's article (OHS bounced in Class B, Nov. 14-15) stated, "It only seemed fitting that on Friday the 13th, a player wearing No. 13 on his jersey ended Oneonta High's boys soccer season."
I hope your readers didn't think for a second that Oneonta's No. 13 was that player. Our No. 13 was a major part of our success.
_ Todd Foreman, Oneonta
Foreman is the president of the Oneonta Boys Soccer Booster Club.
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