Wednesday, April 26, 2017

DePaul Coach Eugene Lenti Is A Winner

The Lenti family has carved out quite a legacy on the Chicago sports scene.  Among other family members, Frank (Mt. Carmel) and Eugene (DePaul) have done historic things at my alma maters.
Like his family, Eugene is not overly concerned with numbers or statistics.  He cares about winning and teaching.  This is just one of the reasons he has won so much and has staggering numbers and stats on his resume.
In his 36th year coaching DePaul softball, Eugene has won 1,263 games, winning #1200 in 2014.  Since 1999,i he has taken four teams to the Women's College World Series.
There have also been a lot of individual player honors over the years.  Of course, my old favorite Kirsten Verdun won her share of awards under Eugene's tutelage.
While he obviously loves softball, he lists it as third, behind family and school.  As a teacher, he instills these values onto his players.
Last Wednesday, I watched my alma mater lose 8-0 to the Northwestern Wildcats.  On one hand, my loyalties were divided.  On the other hand, I couldn't lose either way.
I met Coach Eugene after the game.  Despite the tough loss, he was in great spirits.  That is a real winner.  That is Eugene Lenti.
Eugene Lenti and me in Evanston, IL-April 2017.

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