DATE: Sunday, May 11, 1997                  TAG: 9705080627

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C11  EDITION: FINAL 

SERIES: Mother's Day Stories 

SOURCE: JAMES BLACK

                                            LENGTH:   42 lines

SHRECEE PURHAM, SALEM HIGH: TOUGH LOVE BY COACH/MOTHER KEEPS DAUGHTERS ON TRACK

Shrecee Purham takes no mess from her athletes . . . even if it comes from daughters Kyra and Tiffany.

``As a matter of fact, I just disciplined both of them,'' the Salem girls track coach said. ``Tiffany was suspended from practice for two days and Kyra has been on probation.''

As a mother, Purham believes tough, unconditional love is a must. And as a former track star in high school and at Bradley University, Purham knows she must carry that tough love over to the field.

It's a challenge she wasn't sure she could handle.

``I've wondered if I made the right decision to coach them,'' said Purham, who has taught at Salem since it opened in 1989. ``I considered coaching somewhere else.''

But after a lot of thought and prayer, she realized staying at Salem would have benefits.

``That allows me to stay in the same school so I could watch boyfriends, teachers and who they hang with,'' she said.

Kyra, a senior, and Tiffany, a sophomore, say their mom is the most competitive.

``When we lift weights, she tries to lift the most,'' said Tiffany, who won the 55-meter dash at the state indoor meet this year. ``She tries to out-sprint us.''

And ``Mom'' does not hesitate to fuel the fire.

``I pull out the articles and the medals and say, `Try to match that Tiffany,' '' said Purham, who, like Tiffany, competed in the sprints and long jump. ``We race sometimes and they get scared because they know I can still come out of those blocks.''

Or maybe they fear they might get disciplined if they beat ``Mom'' too badly. ILLUSTRATION: Photo

Shrecee Purham...

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