The St. Vincent Sports Medicine’s “Spirit of Sport” Athletic Recognition Dinner 2008 to be held July 13 will be covered in full by HoosierAuthority.com. To get your emotional juices flowing, we will bring you each day this week a nomination for the Creativity – Comeback Athlete of the Year Award.
This winner will prove to be someone who has come back from a setback to accomplish his or her personal best in a particular sport. Saturday’s nominee is Indianapolis Chatard girls basketball player Caroline Schutzman.
Caroline Schutzman
I could easily write this essay on how Caroline overcame a nagging knee injury that had her sidelined for a few games this past basketball season. I could tell you how she fought to come back and contribute as soon as the doctor gave her the OK. I could tell you that she did whatever shooting drills she could and played through the pain.
This is the type of comeback that we applaud for so many athletes every season, every year. We are impressed with athletes that have the drive and determination to fight through this kind of physical pain and setback. This injury in itself would be enough to consider Caroline for the St. Vincent Spirit of Sport Comeback Athlete of the Year Award.
Unfortunately this isn’t the only test of courage Caroline would have to face this year and, in fact, pales in comparison to the test that lay ahead.
Just days after Caroline returned to the court, she would be faced with a devastating turn of events. Very few people, let alone high school athletes, ever have to overcome a catastrophic event such as the event Caroline and her family experienced this year.
Halfway through her senior varsity basketball season, Caroline received tragic news that her older sister, Brigette, a cross country and track athlete at St. Louis University, was in a near-fatal car accident. Through the faith and prayers of the family and friends, and the grace of God, Brigette survived.
However, the journey toward recovery would be a long road for the entire family. Caroline balanced the demands of being a competitive athlete with being a devoted sister. She often spent two hours after school in an exhausting practice, then went to her sister’s hospital bedside. Knowing her sister possessed her same fighting spirit, Caroline spent countless hours cheering Brigette on through her recovery.
At the same time, Caroline found the focus and determination to help lead her team to the Class 3A state championship game. She averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds on Indianapolis Chatard’s school-record 23-5 season. Caroline played an integral role as a leader on the team, and she earned a full-ride scholarship to play at the University of Indianapolis while also receiving All-City and All-State honors.
She never used Brigette’s accident as an excuse not to play her best. She instead played for Brigette.
In the postseason tournament, every time the team won, Carline cut a piece of the net for Brigette. When Caroline was announced at the state championship game, she held two fingers up to the camera as a sign to Brigette. So that as Brigette watched from the hospital, she would know that Caroline believed Brigette would recover and be “twice as good” as before the accident.
It is this type of dedication – first to her faith and her family, then to her teammates and the sport – that exemplifies the spirit of St. Vincent Sports Medicine and the spirit of sports.
That is why I would nominate Caroline for the Comeback Athlete of the Year. Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, “I will try again tomorrow.” Anyone can give up – it’s the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that’s true strength.
Caroline displayed that strength, that courage, all season long.
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