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The sweat-infused helmets and pads have all been checked in at West Salem High. The Titans ended their year with a hard-to-swallow 21-20 loss to Tualatin in the OSAA 6A semifinals at PGE Park. It was the sort of loss that gnaws at your intestines for an extended period of time as each player thinks "what if." For West, the semi-final game was an as expected toe-to-toe smash-mouth confrontation decided by a single point on a night when the smallest of miscues meant the difference between going home and moving to the state title game. It might have been better to have lost by six touchdowns. Despite the ache, the West Salem squad and their fans have nothing to hang their heads about. The Titans ended their season as they began, with determination, heart and a familial feeling that only a top-calibur team can experience. The state championship trophy that they were all gunning for will go to somebody else. But no one can take away the championship attitude and class that the Titans displayed from day one. It is a humbly confident team personality that started at the top with coach Shawn Stanley and infected the entire West Salem student body. It was a personality refined by weeks, months, and years of practicing and playing together in stifling summer heat, soaking autumn rains and bone-chilling winter winds. It was a personality endellibly etched in the hearts of every player and coach. Titan players will not get the opportunity to hoist the hardware on championship game day. But what they took away from this season is much more valuable than an idol of wood and gold-painted plastic. Their lives, and the lives of their fans will be forever altered by the journey they took in 2007. They may not be the state champs, but we should all remember the Titans.
Mark Gilman can be contacted at mark@fullaccesssports.com
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