Leslie's last word about the 8th grade girls

Courtesy: Alex Nguy (Leslie's cousin)

By Leslie Truong

For those of you who have seen me coach only at games...what you see is an intense, loud and passionate basketball coach. For you to understand why my girls became the way they are, you must also understand my St. Mary's story.

I was not always this way. I was once the shy girl who cried about going to school and was too scared to even tell people my name. When I started playing basketball in the 4th grade, I had no idea what I was doing. My team finished the season 2-6, including one win that ended with a final score of 2-1. 

I was no athlete to brag about and I was scared about boxing out against the bigger girls, playing aggressive defense, and driving to the basket. Sound familiar?

Then I got a new coach in the 5th grade who coached me until I graduated from St. Mary's. He taught my team how to be fast and most importantly how to become fearless competitors. Aside from our wildly successful tenure as a basketball team that Bryan will never talk about because it was before his time as athletic director (three consecutive hard-fought championship wins in 1998, 1999 and 2000), I carried so much of what my St. Mary's coach taught me into my life off the court. I became confident, motivated and the complete opposite of shy, and I truly believe that my St. Mary's basketball experience had everything to do with shaping me into who I am today.

When I met my girls in their 5th grade year (2011), I saw in them potential that most people didn't see. It was the same thing when I met Becca their 6th grade year and Lily this year. Every girl had the potential to become more aggressive on the court, to become fearless, and to become champions. I knew their potential because I saw in them the same drive and determination that I had when I was an athlete at St. Mary's. 

They worked hard and it was not easy for me as a coach either. We went through countless disappointments as a team throughout the years. I went through hours of pondering about how I can help each girl believe in herself as a basketball player, just as my St. Mary's coach did for my teammates and I. So much of what they needed to do to improve was more than just basketball fundamentals, it was also mental. 

We started seeing great results as early as 6th grade, but still, I had to be hard on them. Even when they played a decent game, I would tell them that they have to be better in the next game. That's because I knew they wanted to be better than just good. They wanted to be winners.

Now they can legitimately call themselves winners, and I don't say that because we won a championship this year. Winning isn't everything in sports if you're talking about just the score, but without the score, I believe winning is everything.  

Winning to me means working hard to overcome your obstacles and feeling successful, whether you win or lose a game. My girls are evidence of that. They have all transformed into incredibly confident and focused athletes.

Now my 8th graders are moving up to high school and I never thought the day would come for me to say "good-bye." Even though they might say that they'll miss me since I'm not going to be their coach anymore, that's actually not true.

Kelly, Jamie, Fiona, Victoria, Becca (and Lily for next year) - I will always be your coach even if I'm not the one yelling at you to run your suicides faster. 

I will always be your coach because I will never stop cheering you on and believing in you, whether it's in basketball or anything else you pursue in life. 

All I ask is that you always work hard and never give up on yourselves because what you accomplished with me as your coach at St. Mary's is proof that you can always find a way to win.