The season didn't end quite like they had envisioned -- but nobody can take anything away from what the St. Vincent High football Indians accomplished this year.

It was truly a dream season for the Indians, who reached heights that most teams across the state can only dream about.

When the year began, the Indians had high hopes of bringing home the school's first-ever football playoff victory.

The Indians did that -- and much, much more. They started the season with a win and never tasted defeat until falling to North Platte 30-7 in Friday's Class 1A state championship game in St. Louis.

But not even that setback can detract from what the Indians did this year, going 13-1 and reaching the state championship game for the first time in school history.

Along the way, St. Vincent electrified Perryville -- as evidenced by the approximately 4,000 fans who made their way to the TWA Dome Friday to cheer on the Indians.

Congratulations to the Indians on a sensational season.

And kudos to all the area football teams who made the playoffs this year and a general pat on the back to all the young men who left everything they had out on the field in 1998 -- regardless of how their squads fared.

* Congratulations to Southeast Missouri State University's volleyball team for winning the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament and earning a berth in the big NCAA tourney.

Even though the Otahkians fell short of winning a sixth straight OVC regular-season title this year, they put it all together when it counted the most.

Tonight, the Otahkians will find out who they play in the first round of the NCAAs.

* I'm still having a hard time figuring out why only 4,573 fans were at the Show Me Center last Monday to watch SEMO play Louisiana Tech.

For the Indians to have a realistic chance of upsetting the extremely talented Bulldogs, they needed a packed house to really make things tough on the visitors.

Instead, the Indians got about the same size crowd that had turned out for romps past lower-division teams SIU-Edwardsville and Central Methodist.

In my opinion, it was a pretty weak effort by SEMO fans. Hopefully they'll get their act together for conference play.

* If Ricky Williams didn't already have the Heisman Trophy wrapped up before Friday, he almost certainly sealed it with his brilliant 259-yard performance against Texas A&M.

* Former SEMO baseball star Kerry Robinson is now with his third professional team.

Robinson, who spent three years in the Cardinals' organization before being drafted by expansion Tampa Bay last year, was recently acquired by Seattle.

* Sikeston High senior Brandon Barnes recently gave a verbal commitment to the University of Missouri football program.

Barnes, one of the area's premier all-around athletes, had more than 1,000 all-purpose yards for the Bulldogs this year. He stands 6-feet-4 and weighs 205 pounds.

~Marty Mishow is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian