By Harry Minium
Who knew that Nikki McCray-Penson had such a great set of pipes?
The Old Dominion University women's basketball coach stunned a Chartway Arena crowd of 2,069, and her players and assistant coaches, by taking a microphone and singing the national anthem prior to ODU's final home game Wednesday night against UAB.
The Monarchs lost, 64-61, in overtime when UAB's Lea Kerstein came in for her only play of the game and buried a 3-pointer with just .4 seconds left.
While the loss put a damper on ODU's Senior Night, and ended the Monarchs' home winning streak at 16, McCray's performance was as memorable as it was surprising. Her players were still buzzing about it at game's end.
I posted a video on Twitter of her singing the anthem late Thursday and within a few hours it had been viewed 2,000 times. Videos posted by others also racked up thousands of hits. Not quite viral, but the video got comments from fans at Georgia and Kentucky.
Athletic director Wood Selig said McCray called Jason Chandler, ODU's associate athletic director in charge of marketing, on Wednesday and asked if she could sing the anthem. Her unusual request went through channels and was approved.
Only a handful of people knew she was going to sing. She wanted it to be a surprise.
And it was a huge surprise. Who's ever heard of a head coach singing a national anthem before a game?
Professional singers, country star Luke Bryan comes to mind, have had epic fails when attempting to sing the Star-Spangled Banner. Many forget the words. Others can't hit the high notes.
But Nikki didn't forget a word. She has a sweet, soulful voice and is delicious to the ear, hit every note and sang with emotion. A great singer tells a story when performing, and as Nikki sang, you knew she clearly loves her country.
A handful of players, and a ton more fans, dabbed tears from their eyes when she was done.
McCray grew up in Collierville, Tenn., just outside of Memphis, where her family was devoutly Christian. She never took voice lessons, she said.
"I grew up in the church," she said. "I grew up signing in the church choir."
If you've watched the PBS series on country music by Ken Burns, you know that in Tennessee and other Southern states that country music, the blues and gospel are all one mishmash that have far more in common than not. Most songs deal with the tragedy that live doles out to so many. and those stories transcend racial and social barriers.
Great singers have often dealt with tragedy and Nikki certainly has had her share. She survived breast cancer while coaching at the University of South Carolina and cared for her mother back home in Tennessee two years ago as she died from breast cancer.
She said when she began to sing, she was nervous.
"But I wanted to surprise our team and do something special," she said. "And yes, I have sung the national anthem a couple of times."
More than a couple, actually. A quick check of the internet shows while playing in the WNBA in 2006, she sang the anthem before a San Antonio Spurs-Miami Heat game in Texas. Other stories indicate she's sung at other college basketball and volleyball games.
McCray has two Olympic gold medals, and often passed the time with teammates singing pop songs.
Never, however, has she sung the national anthem before a game in which she coached. That's in part because her voice gets quite a workout during both games and practice.
"I don't have the voice I normally would have," she said. "I was a little nervous about that because my voice isn't where it needs to be. But I think the seniors enjoyed it."
They did, said Taylor Edwards, who along with Ashley Scott, played their final games at Chartway Arena, assuming the Monarchs don't go to the WNIT.
"When she sang the national anthem I was saying 'yo, what's going on?" Edwards said. "It was such a surprise.
"But it was very nice. She's got a great voice."
Selig agreed.
"It was a great surprise for everyone," he said. "And she sang so well. She's got a fantastic voice.
Contact Minium: hminium@odu.edu
Minium: Nikki McCray Surprised Her Players, and ODU Fans, by Singing the National Anthem on Senior Night
