The Upper Merion at Souderton Coaches vs. Cancer girls’ basketball game on Saturday afternoon will be an SOL Featured Game, sponsored by Millennium Administrators. Check back for photos and a complete game story.
By Mary Jane Souder
Tom Welch may be gone from the sidelines, but the beloved former assistant is still very much a part of the Souderton girls’ basketball team this season.
It was just over a year ago – Jan. 14, 2013, to be exact – that the players were informed that Welch was battling bone cancer. His battle ended much sooner than anyone expected when he passed away on Feb. 20, five days after the Indians had won their first district playoff game in coach Lynn Carroll’s nine-year tenure.
On Saturday afternoon, the Indians will honor their former coach when his wife Sue will be serving as an honorary coach for the team’s SOL Challenge game against Upper Merion.
“Having Sue on the bench is going to be really emotional, and just the fact that it’s a flashback from last season – it’s going to be a lot of emotions,” senior captain Bianca Picard said. “I think as a team we’re going to take those emotions and filter them into the game, which I’m really, really hoping for.”
The idea to recognize Welch was the brainchild of Carroll and assistants Josh Klimovich and Ben Bowman.
“Tom meant so much to us and to the program that we wanted to somehow honor him in a game this season,” Carroll said. “That was the initial thought, and it turned into showing appreciation for Sue and everything she has done.
“She has become, without a doubt, our most loyal and consistent fan other than family members of the people in the program. It doesn’t matter who we’re playing, where we’re playing or what time – she maybe missed one game all year, and she came to every playoff game last year.”
The day of Welch’s death, Sue and family members were at the Indians’ district playoff game at North Penn, supporting the team. It was a gesture that has not been forgotten by the players or the coaches.
“It was really tough,” senior Devon Boehm said. “When we found out in school, everyone was so devastated and so upset.
“We all became so much closer with Sue when this happened, and she was there for us. She would always tell us to keep our heads up. She would try and help us, and she was always very positive throughout the whole thing trying to help us through it just like we were trying to help her through it.”
A bond was formed through that experience that has only gotten stronger. Sue Welch can regularly be found behind the team’s bench cheering for the players and offering encouragement, filling the void that was left with her husband’s passing.
“I had the privilege of playing for him,” said Boehm, who was on Welch’s last freshman team. “He was very supportive of every one of his players. Even if you made a bad play, he was always on the positive side.
“We could be losing by 20, and he would encourage us, and we would end up winning. We actually went undefeated that season. He would never get frustrated with us. He would always be very encouraging towards us. He made everyone a better person.
“He’s encouraging of everyone, no matter what team you’re on, or even if you never played for him, he would try and help you get better and encourage you.”
Sue Welch’s support this season goes beyond attending games.
“She e-mails the coaches after every game – if we win by 30 or if we lose, it doesn’t matter,” Carroll said. “Tom was very nurturing. He was always taking care of people, and I think she has taken it upon herself to fill that void for the coaches and the players.
“We just found out the other day that she e-mails some of the players also. It’s great. She’s funny, she’s sweet, she’s supportive. We no longer have him and what he gave us, which is now what she’s trying to give us.”
According to Picard, Sue Welch’s impact has been profound.
“There’s nothing better than when the game is over and Sue is there cheering us on, hugging us and coming into the locker room because at that time – it’s not even about winning any more,” the senior captain said. “It’s more about how we come together as a family, pick each other up when we’re down.
“To have somebody who is so uplifting sending you e-mails after games, telling you what she thought of the game, how we always play hard – you can’t even pay someone to do that for you. She’s just the most caring, perfect person.
“I don’t believe in perfect people, but she has to be perfect. She is just amazing all around. She’s been so strong for us that I think it’s made for a great season. She’s always there for us. She honestly is the best. I don’t think I would have gotten as close to her if this hadn’t happened. She’s just an amazing person, and I love her to death.”
The team has several warm-up shirts they wear in their former coach’s memory – the shirts simply have the large initials TW printed on them.
“Everyone thinks it’s for teamwork, and it’s funny because he always preached teamwork,” Picard said. “So it’s ironic that the letters on the shirt are the same.
“He definitely had a huge impact on our program. Coach Carroll has done a really nice job of keeping him a part of the program. Our coaches never forget about him, not matter what, and that says a lot about the coaching staff that we have.”
Saturday’s game is a chance for the coaches and players to make a public statement about just how much Tom Welch – and more recently, Sue Welch - have meant to their program.
“Sue means the world the coaches and the players,” Carroll said. “She showed so much selflessness at the end of the season after Tom passed away.
“She just made it all about the girls and helping them through it. What a difficult and unimaginable situation. It’s who Tom was and who Sue is. They’re just givers and caretakers, and I think these girls are really going to take a lot and learn a lot from Sue, and it’s going to have a lasting impact.
“They’re going to remember her the rest of their lives and how she made everything about them and didn’t make a single thing about herself. What a great, great role model.”
A role model who will be on the team’s bench tomorrow in memory of her husband, whose impact on Souderton’s program can still be felt.
Just the facts:
Upper Merion at Souderton, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2 p.m.
This year’s record: Souderton 10-5 overall (5-3 SOL); Upper Merion 8-6 overall (4-4 SOL)
Last year’s record: Souderton 18-8 overall (11-3 SOL); Upper Merion 14-9 overall (6-8 SOL)
Last game: North Penn 51, Souderton 46 (Sarah Derstein 15 points, Allison Gallagher 12 points, Bianca Picard 9 points, Devon Boehm 8 points)
Upper Merion 61, Norristown 56 OT (Regie Robinson 29 points, Eryn Brady 9 points, Tatiana Pleasant 8 points, Jessie Michael 8 points)
Souderton
(Projected Starters)
Bianca Picard #25 Senior guard
Allison Gallagher #3 Senior guard
Katie O'Connor #10 Senior guard
Devon Boehm #33 Senior guard/forward
Sarah Derstein #31 junior forward
The rest of the Indians:
Hannah Bergey #21 senior guard
Marissa Sandone #23 soph guard
Noelle Noble #14 junior forward
Olivia Kaunert #12 soph forward
Krista Schneider #4 soph guard
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