Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, April 29, 1995 TAG: 9505040022
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
``Rob had just made a power move to score on one of our best defensemen,'' Bartlett said, ``and as I jumped up and shouted, `You're the man,' there standing behind the goal and grinning broadly was his father.
``It was the last day we saw De alive. I can't remember a more poignant moment I've had in coaching.''
De Worrell, a former VMI football player and staunch alumnus, died in an airplane crash Sept. 8, 1994, outside Pittsburgh.
``He didn't know much about lacrosse; he couldn't coach me,'' Rob Worrell said. ``But, my dad always supported me. He's been an inspiration, maybe even more now than when he was living. I say a little prayer to him before every game.''
The play that De Worrell saw during fall practice was only a preview of things to come. After scoring seven goals as a freshman, Rob Worrell leads the Keydets (8-4) with 58 points, including 25 goals.
``I had a rough time [as a freshman] because I didn't weigh anything,'' said Worrell, a Rockbridge High School product. ``Maybe that had something to do with [VMI's rigorous] Rat Line, but, after the season, I determined I had to get in the weight room and get bigger.''
Worrell added 25 pounds to his 6-foot-2, 175-pound frame and was beginning to bull his way past defenders when fall workouts were interrupted and trivialized by his father's death.
``His first task was to work things out emotionally, mentally and academically,'' Bartlett said. ``I wanted lacrosse to be the farthest thing from his mind, but I think it was a vehicle through which he gained inner peace.''
After an absence of 21/2 to 3 weeks, Worrell returned for the end of fall practice.
``I actually felt, by the end of the fall, my game had declined,'' he said. ``Because of my other priorities, I had a hard time focusing on lacrosse. But my dad's always taught us, you have to get on with life.''
It was one of many lessons Worrell learned from his father, who remained a standout handball player at 54. VMI sponsored the Dee Worrell Memorial handball tournament in early April.
``With my dad, sportsmanship was the key,'' said Worrell, the youngest of three children, including a brother and a sister. ``Whatever sport he played, he gave 100 percent.''
The younger Worrell has been playing lacrosse since the seventh grade, but he did not have the kind of exposure to the game that players in Maryland or New York have. Now that his skills have started to blossom, his only regret is that his father can't be around to see it.
``I don't think he was going to let this time in his life pass him by,'' Bartlett said. ``One of the things that this tragedy taught him was that you've got to seize the moment.''
by CNB