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Parishioners anxious for result of Gonzaga game during Palm Sunday Mass

Elaine Thaden, a Gonzaga alum, exits St. Aloysius after a morning Palm Sunday service prior to tipoff of Gonzaga’s Sweet 16 basketball game versus Creighton University. The duel between the two Jesuit schools resulted in an 83-65 victory for the Zags and actually a higher-than-predicted crowd volume for the 11 a.m. Mass, with 172 people who signed up to attend the socially distanced service, plus walk-in attendees. (Libby Kamrowski/ THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW)
By Emma Epperly emmae@spokesman.com(509) 459-5122

Just before the tipoff of the Gonzaga Bulldogs’ Sweet 16 game against the Creighton Bluejays, Sister Sue Orlowski sneaked out of Mass at St. Aloysius Gonzaga Church.

Orlowski, carrying her palm fronds that mark the beginning of the holy week, headed back to her home near the Gonzaga University campus to catch the start of the game .

“The Zags need me,” Orlowski said.

Gonzaga University junior Meredith Perez prays during a morning Palm Sunday service at St. Aloysius that coincided with Gonzaga
Gonzaga University junior Meredith Perez prays during a morning Palm Sunday service at St. Aloysius that coincided with Gonzaga’s Sweet Sixteen NCAA basketball game versus Creighton University on March 28, 2021. The dual-Jesuit school duel resulted in an 83-65 win for the Zags and actually a higher-than-predicted crowd volume for the 11 a.m. Mass, with 172 people who signed up to attend the socially-distanced service, plus walk-in attendees. (Libby Kamrowski/ THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW)Buy a print of this photo

The Palm Sunday service was the first time Orlowski had attended Mass in person in more than a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Orlowski didn’t want to miss two holy weeks in a row, but she also couldn’t miss the Zags game, she said.

Orlowski has been a Gonzaga fan since she moved to Spokane 21 years ago. She has tickets to watch the women’s basketball team, and while she couldn’t watch in-person this year due to the pandemic, Orlowski said watching the women’s team is “the best entertainment in town.”

Father Tom Lamanna stood on the steps of St. Aloysius after his second service of Palm Sunday. He immediately began joking about the Zags, asking parishioners if the game had started yet as they exited the church.

“I was going to check the score but I’ll wait,” he joked with one attendee.

Gonzaga students walked by decked out in Zags gear carrying blankets, chairs and other supplies to watch the game outside on campus.

“I love that they’re playing Creighton, another Jesuit university,” Lamanna said.

Lamanna said the earlier two Masses weren’t busier than normal, but the church has adapted mass due to the pandemic with limited seating and requiring attendees to register in advance. Mass is also live-streamed so that parishioners can still worship from the safety of their homes.

As attendees of the 11 a.m. Mass began to take their seats, Lamanna joked that he would make sure to wrap things up in time for attendees to catch the end of the game.

For Anne Marie and Dean McCarthy, who attended the 11 a.m. Mass with their son Cormic, missing the game wasn’t a big deal, especially since they were sure Gonzaga would come out on top.

The McCarthys normally attend Mass at St. Aloysius but hadn’t been in a long time due to COVID-19, Anne Marie said. The Gonzaga game provided a nice chance to make sure they would get tickets.

“This Mass was not sold out,” Anne Marie said.

While the family doesn’t consider themselves to be major Zags fans, they do keep track of how their hometown team is doing.

“It would be such a surprise if they lose to Creighton,” Anne Marie said.

“We figured maybe the father would give us an update during Mass,” joked Dean.

While Father Lamanna does consider himself to be a sports fan, he said he would not be giving updates during the service. Lamanna, like everyone else, would have to wait to revel in Gonzaga’s victory until after Mass.