SPORTSMANSHIP

Great gesture by East Longmeadow's Ali McMahon to be commended
Bill Wells, The Republican, February 28, 2011 7:57 a.m.

Prior to competing in the long jump at the Western Massachusetts Indoor Track & Field Championship, East Longmeadow's Ali McMahon went out of her way to help New Leadership's Shannoya Scott. - (The Republican file photo)

After talking to East Longmeadow's Ali McMahon at the Western Massachusetts Indoor Track & Field Championship, New Leadership's Shannoya Scott got out of her emotional funk. - (The Republican file photo)Great high school stories should be told and great high school students should be commended.

A brief conversation at a Western Massachusetts championship event in early February produced a great story, and EastLongmeadowHigh School senior Ali McMahon is to be commended.

McMahon was the reigning champion in the long jump at the Western Massachusetts Indoor Track & Field Championship at SmithCollege in Northampton Feb. 4.

East Longmeadow was in the hunt for its first team title in the program’s history and the Spartans were counting on big points out of McMahon in the long jump.

As McMahon stretched prior to the event, she noticed NewLeadershipCharterSchool’s Shannoya Scott coming in her general direction. Scott was also a legitimate contention for the region’s long jump title.

McMahon, who had small-talked with Scott in the past, didn’t think the New Leadership junior was quite right that evening.

“She was limping,” McMahon said. “I’ve talked with her before so I asked her if she was OK. She said her knee and her ankle were hurting her. I told her she needed to take it easy and to be careful.”

That alone was a kind gesture by McMahon.

A few moments later, though, the East Longmeadow honor roll student showed her true, complete, remarkable character.

Rewinding a bit, Scott’s dad died in early February seven years ago in Jamaica. Scott, one of the best all-around track athletes in the region, is reserved and doesn’t like attention. On team bus trips she sits behind her coach, Quran Hodge.

Regarding the death of her father, Scott still gets in funks and has a hard time getting out. At the championship meet, Scott was in a funk and she couldn’t get out.

“I was very down,” admitted Scott, an honor roll student. “I was not happy at all. I kept thinking about the day my dad had passed. I just didn’t feel like myself. I was talking to my sister earlier in the day and she was telling me how she missed him and how it was sad my brother didn’t get a chance to meet him because my dad died right before my brother was born.

“It just felt like everything was closing in.”

Hodge, who saw Scott crying at the championship meet, made a most noble attempt to help his athlete.

“I told her I feel the same way,” said Hodge, whose dad died in 2002. “My dad was very close to me. His birthday was Dec. 27. I don’t like celebrating Christmas because it’s two days before his birthday, and my birthday is Feb. 7 so I don’t have a good holiday season either.

“I told her I could relate to how she felt.”

Hodge’s words, however, didn’t take hold. Scott was emotionally stuck before she bumped into McMahon at the long jump area. After McMahon told Scott to be careful due to her injuries, McMahon’s mom happened to flag down her daughter and gave her the ‘I love you’ sign language symbol.

Scott asked McMahon if that was her mom. McMahon said it was and how she loved how her mom came to all of her meets. Scott said she wished her mom could come to her meets but she was always working.

“I told her, ‘I’m sure she’s excited to hear all the stories about how you do at track’,” McMahon explained.

And then Scott, with tears in her eyes, opened up to McMahon.

“She said it was the seventh-year anniversary of when her father passed away,” McMahon said. “I told her I was sorry to hear that.”

And then McMahon, like she has done throughout her high school career on the track, went to the next level: “I was getting ready to go to the runway to jump and I went up to her and said, ‘You should really jump for him today. Just do your best and jump for him’.”

What should be noted here is McMahon was competing against Scott in the same event for a Western Massachusetts title. Imagine a great pitcher going up to an opposing batter prior to a championship baseball game and offering words of encouragement, or a basketball player giving a pat on the back to a player on another team before a Western Massachusetts final. Not happening.

McMahon’s words, which just as easily could not have been uttered at all, hit the mark. Scott’s outlook immediately and completely changed. She was happy and suddenly out of her funk.

“The way she said it, it showed she really cared when she said it,” Scott said. “She said it like she cared. That changed my whole mood and it made me feel better.”

McMahon later won the long jump, with Scott placing third.

Last week, Scott said the next time she sees McMahon she’s going to tell her thank you because “that’s something she didn’t have to do but she went out of her way to do it.”

That’s a great story, and Ali McMahon’s a great person . . . who is to be commended.