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Yencha, Andrejko fuel victory for Holy Redeemer girls basketball team

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Church abuse victims waiting on Pa. legislature to act

With Sunday&#8217;s Super Bowl looming, now is the perfect time to point out something that&#8217;s become so obvious yet has been referenced so little.Some of you might want to sit down or brace yourself before we say this, but here goes:Sports, including those played at the professional level, are not critically important.And sports, especially those played at the professional level, have an elevated place in our society that they do not deserve.Sure, the Times Leader newsroom and editorial board are filled with big sports fans.We know many folks will be thrilled to plunk down wagers &#8212; hopefully only ones they can afford to lose &#8212; at the sportsbook in the works for Mohegan Sun Pocono.We would also be foolish not to acknowledge that athletics, either of the amateur or professional variety, are very entertaining and a worthy endeavor.Anyone who has played any organized sport at any level will tell you there are valuable life lessons being learned on fields and courts, such as respect, humility and the value of hard work and teamwork.On the local level, the success of a Little League or high school team can galvanize a community and create a spirit of togetherness.When that happens, as it did last summer with the Tunkhannock girls who played in the Little League Softball World Series, you see the true beauty of sport and what it&#8217;s meant to be.But too often, it seems, we see sports bringing out another side of people that&#8217;s not so nice. (Please feel free to lump into this category the ridiculous number of sports-talk shows that infect our airwaves on a daily basis.)Just look at some recent headlines.Down in New Orleans, fans are still upset about their team missing out on a Super Bowl trip due to a glaring missed call at the end of the NFC championship game against the Los Angeles Rams.There&#8217;s been so much coverage of the fallout, you might think the president is ready to declare a national emergency.Days after the game, two Saints season ticket holders filed a lawsuit against the NFL, demanding that the game&#8217;s result be wiped out and the game restarted, according to Reuters.The same report mentions a case from Oklahoma where a state judge refused to restart a high school football playoff game after officials incorrectly negated a touchdown with just a minute left to play.The judge noted in his opinion that while some considered the game&#8217;s outcome a tragedy, &#8220;more tragic, however, would be for this Court to assert itself in this matter.&#8221;That&#8217;s legalese for: &#8220;Get a life, people!&#8221;Sports are fun.Sports are worthwhile.Sports deserve our coverage.But when you start filing litigation over games, or families spend thousands of dollars so their kid can be on a travel team, maybe it&#8217;s time to take a step back and consider how we got onto this path.And before someone makes that familiar argument about getting their kid a college scholarship, please remember only about 2 percent of high school athletes get one, according to a recent New York Times story.We&#8217;d like to see some of the time and effort spent on athletic pursuits instead be devoted to academics or civic affairs.Why not take some of that same passion you show while rooting for the Eagles or Steelers and use it to volunteer with the local fire department or make some other meaningful impact?All that said, we plan to enjoy the Super Bowl on Sunday &#8212; with a side of nachos and a heaping helping of perspective.&#8212; Times Leader<style>
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<div class="neCaption">New Orleans Saints wide receiver Tommylee Lewis (11) works for a catch against Los Angeles Rams defensive back Nickell Robey-Coleman (23) near the end of the NFC championship game Jan. 20 in New Orleans. The officials did not call a penalty for pass interference on this critical play, which led to two Saints fans filing a lawsuit against the league. The Rams ended up winning the game and advancing to the Super Bowl. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/web1_AP19021008134133.jpg</photo0><caption0>New Orleans Saints wide receiver Tommylee Lewis (11) works for a catch against Los Angeles Rams defensive back Nickell Robey-Coleman (23) near the end of the NFC championship game Jan. 20 in New Orleans. The officials did not call a penalty for pass interference on this critical play, which led to two Saints fans filing a lawsuit against the league. The Rams ended up winning the game and advancing to the Super Bowl. </caption0><photoCredit0>AP Photo | Gerald Herbert </photoCredit0></div></div>

Our View: Some sports fans need a big reality check