. . . "You can't judge your career on whether or not you make the state tournament," he said. "Bob Miller (of Thomas Worthington) is the best example of that. He's one of the all-time greats and has been coaching since I was in high school. You'd like to see someone like that get rewarded, but it takes a little luck here and there and the right collection of talent."

The latter part obviously has materialized for DeSales coach Blair Albright, who, at just 28, is taking his team to the Division II state tournament for the third time in four years.

"It's hard not to think about some of the older guys who have never gotten an opportunity to experience this," Albright said. "That's why I'll never take getting here for granted or dwell on defeats here. A lot of it is truly about being at the right place at the right time. Sometimes, you just can't control why things happen when they happen.

"In my case, I just point to an administration that took a chance on a 25-year-old who had no prior head coaching experience and thank them for an opportunity to work with such talented athletes, who have been taught and coached well in many sports."