The Conquering Calvary

ucked away in the quiet Northeast Fort Worth community of Oakhurst sits Calvary Christian Academy, a pint-sized TAPPS school, hardly big enough for the 17.5 acres it occupies, that packs a big punch in the sport of boys basketball. The Conquerors have won 20 or more games in each of the last 25 seasons, and head coach and athletic director Keith Gober said, in his mind, that is not even the biggest feat the private school has accomplished on the hardwood. "In a four-year period up to this point, Glen Tidwell won 92 games as a player with Calvary back in the 80's and that was the school record," Keith Gober said. "He played four years, and that has always been kind of the milestone of where you want to get. Quincy and Blaine broke that record this season." Seniors Quincy Carroll and Blaine Gober rung in the new year on Jan. 1 by helping their team defeat Rule 51-42 to get them that record. Carroll and Blaine have been the backbone of the Conquerors varsity team since they were freshmen at Calvary, a school with 115 high school students, and have played together on the same squad since fifth grade. "Because of the success that we've been fortunate enough to have, that's pretty significant to us," Keith Gober said. "It shows some consistency and a lot of leadership." Calvary has been to the state final four twice and the regional finals eight times over the past 25 years, playing in the state championship game in 2007, when it lost to Bethesda Christian, a team it had beaten three times during the regular season. Coach Gober noted that Carroll and Blaine were a big part of that team's success. "Their attitude and the way they handle themselves is great," Keith Gober said. "They're not crybabies. They're just so easy to work with. They both show great leadership, because sometimes leaders can be jerks. A leader is not just somebody with a dominant personality that can tell everybody else what to do and get away with it. That's not what they are. Quincy and Blaine are going to be super successful at whatever they do." Coach Gober also picked up his 500th career win on Nov. 13, which gives the Conquerors an average win total of 21 games per season over the last quarter of a century, and all of this without a school gym for the first 20 years. "We rented gyms for years," Keith Gober said. "The tornado came through and wiped out our school in downtown Fort Worth in 2000, and we relocated over here where we're at now. Pier 1 Imports bought our old property, so we got this new gym and things are looking up." Blaine Gober, a senior point guard and Keith's son, said being a part of the Calvary program and breaking the record for most wins is something that he will forever cherish. "This means a lot," Blaine said. "Me and Quincy have grown up together; we've been at Calvary all of our lives and playing together for a long time, and being able to play for my dad and help him to win just means a lot." Carroll, a power forward, agreed that it was special to achieve the goal with his friend, but said he and Blaine both feel like the team has some unfinished business this season. "Our goal is state," Carroll said. "We feel like our team is good enough to win state and that is the main objective for this year. We're going to figure out a way to get there." -