Girl's Hoops Coach Fired After 100-0 Win

Jan. 26, 2009— -- The coach of a girls' high school basketball team in Texas that blew out another team 100-0 was fired Sunday after refusing to apologize "for a wide-margin victory."

Micah Grimes, former coach of Covenant School girl's basketball team, defended the win in an e-mail to the Dallas Morning News, saying "my girls played with honor and integrity."

The Covenant School, a private Christian high school in Dallas, which formally apologized for the big win over Dallas Academy, a small private school for students with learning disabilities, last week, called the trouncing "shameful."

During the lopsided Jan. 13 game, spectators said the Covenant School ran up the score, playing aggressive offense, even with their 59-0 lead at halftime. The girls kept on the pressure until they scored the 100th point.

"I was really frustrated, especially at halftime," Dallas Academy junior Lauren Click said. "I actually did ask my coach, 'Do we have to go back out there?'"

The Dallas Academy has eight girls on the varsity team and is used to challenges on and off the court. Despite hours in the gym practicing each week, the Bulldogs haven't won a girls basketball game in five years.

"We are not quitters, and we don't give up," Click said. "And we try hard at whatever we do, even if we are losing 100 to 0."

The girls hold no illusion that they would be able to play varsity basketball at a more competitive school like Covenant, whose star player is featured in YouTube videos. But the girls still enjoy the chance to get out on the court and compete.

"I was frustrated, but we got through and we did it," said Eleanor Callan, a Dallas Academy player. "I think we did a really good job, and I'm proud that we did what we did. We played really hard, no matter what the score was."

The team decided to turn a losing situation into a learning one, starting with a lesson in defense.

"We figured it can't get worse so we might as well start learning from them," said Shelby Hyatt, a Dallas Academy player.

Above all, coach Jeremy Civello said he is proud that the Dallas Academy Bulldogs persevered.