Florida Catholic | Bishop Moore JV Lacrosse Team Mourns Loss Of Friend

Bishop Moore JV lacrosse team mourns loss of friend

DEBRA TOMASELLI | FLORIDA CATHOLIC CORRESPONDENT

Published: 03.07.08

ORLANDO | Bishop Moore High School’s junior varsity lacrosse coach Becky Martin found herself in a position to prepare her players for more than a ball game recently.

Several members of her lacrosse team were close friends with Kelly Erin Reen, a Bishop Moore sophomore who died in a car accident Feb. 17.

The team was slated to play West Orange High Feb. 22, and Kelly’s funeral was that morning. Martin later learned that several team members, while attending the funeral, made a pact.

“We were so sad and we wanted to get pumped up for the game that night, so we agreed to win it for Kelly,” said Melissa Erfurth, a sophomore at Bishop Moore and member of the lacrosse team.

Grief-stricken, they had trouble focusing during the game. When West Orange took the lead, the Hornets felt as if they weren’t keeping their promise to win. “I was crying hysterically on the field,” said Melissa.

At the break, Martin gathered her team.

“You came and walked onto this field with a broken heart and that makes you a winner,” she said. “You are playing with your heart and soul, and that makes you a winner.”

The girls wiped their tears and nodded.

“It doesn’t matter what the scoreboard says,” stated Martin. “You are a winner by doing those two things.”

Melissa said the experience taught her to rely on her faith and belief that Kelly is in heaven. “I learned we still have to stay strong,” she said.

The Hornets lost that game, 7-5, but, according to Martin, they were all winners.

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Bishop Moore JV lacrosse team mourns loss of friend

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