Personal Essay: The Aviano Softball Team

Clouds mugged the sun of light as the day progressed. Dusk filled the air on the baseball diamond where I would leave my legacy. Forth, was the championship game to be played, and the pressure of the starting pitcher, was not fazing me. In the zone, we said the Little League pledge. Jolts of excitement filled my muscles as I recited the piece that I know all too well. Warming up, I was controlled, and was ready to bring it. The game began with a bang. Strikeout after strikeout I fired, giving my all every single pitch. ‘BOOM’ went the glove after every pitch, whizzed right by the petrified batter. However, this was not much different for our team. Just two hits filled the board, I and my teammate Ian Keth. Scoring off of this was efficient,

Sunday April 24, 2016. This was the date of this tournament. The team that I’m on is called the Berlin Bulldogs. Berlin is the town that we support, and Bulldogs to support that we’re a tough and strong team. We played eight games and lost 3, won 3, and tied 2 of the games. Most of the parents that we had to support us, were supplying the food and drinks so that we wouldn’t starve or run out of drinks. We had a chant, a great team, and the best coaches that guided us through the success that we needed. The worst part of this tournament was that we’re a 2nd league team and we were playing against the best of the best teams. The strange thing was that we won against one of those teams by 10 points (they must have played against really easy teams to become the best of the best teams!). The fields that we played on had the greenest of grass, but the fields were horrible because there were many areas that had holes and many people on the teams came off the field in pain because of falling into those holes.

While I felt as if we would lose, I still wanted to try my hardest to change that outcome. I played my hardest at Shortstop and was able to get two of the three outs by a double play. Sadly that play had come at the expense of a run from their team. The last batter from their team was struck out and we headed back to get ready and bat. The crowd kept supporting us through the bad calls from the umpire and the strikeouts even to this point. The team was motivated and ready to take this game and head to finals with my morale boosted I got ready to cheer my team on

Each and every week I would head out to the baseball park, not because the experience would always leave me with joy, but because of the joy and satisfaction that the players had when they came and left the field. Many of the player’s parents told my fellow buddies and I, that the players would start counting down the days until the next Sunday, as soon as they’d get into the car! Throughout the entire Challenger season, I was reminded of how easy my life actually is, and how a how much I take for granted daily. With this program having such a great impact, I was dedicated to making sure that the player’s experience was the best possible. Which meant that I would often get there early, and help our Challenger division coordinator, to set up and makes sure that everything was ready for when the players came. My hard-work, and readiness to help out obviously were apparent to the coordinator, Jeff Sandes, as he came to me at the end of last year’s season to thank me for all the hard work, time and effort, I had put in to make sure that the players' experiences were the best

We were not expected to be in this position after starting the season with two wins and six losses. With the bases loaded, I stepped into the batter’s box for my second at bat in the 2017 PA District 2 AAAA High School Championship game. Our opponent was stacked with three prospective Division 1 pitchers. I was nervous to say the least, but then my “moment” arrived. I saw my pitch, and launched a bases clearing triple that added to a lead that would eventually produce a victory for my team. We moved on through the playoffs, and eventually landed at Medlar field in State College, where we delivered our first baseball State Championship in school history.

“The softball season was a success with both teams. The varsity did phenomenal except for one weekend, and the junior varsity didn’t win as much but gave it their all and played with everything they had.” says the assistant coach, coach

After all my hard work and preparation it is final time to kick the season off. We start off with a tournament in Fountain Hills. It’s our first game of the year and I’m leading off the game, I walk to the plate and stand in the box, my first at bat of the year I make contact with the ball and man did I get all of it, I hit a homerun on the very first pitch of my new season. Even though personally I started off the season on a great note it wasn’t the same for my team, my team was off to a 0-8 start.

When Mckenzie wakes up she puts on her softball clothes. She is ready to go play her game. Today you win or go home. My team has not lost a game yet,and it is double elimination. Here we are at our softball game,and on the field.

Three years ago our 12u Green Bulldogs baseball team had come a long way in the state tournament, with me at the helm. Through this tournament I’ve been in the lead of my team absolutely ripping through the competition. We got the sixteen seed, and our next game would come up against the one seed.

We started out the game winning and the team was all so happy to. ELysa was pitching and I was catching this game. The score at this point was 6-4. Our parents were yelling and cheering so loud for us since we were winning they were so happy for us. Earlier that day we lost to that team in our first game by 6 and we were up by 2.

*When it was time for the game to start our team was ready to play and after the first couple of innings we were up 5-3 so everyone was really into the game and again when we got to the dugout our coach told us that we were doing really good and to keep doing what we were doing so we did. *We went out and won 7-4 and after the games we played we never had a bad attitude about not winning ever again and thanks to coach for giving us the confidence to believe in ourselves and try our hardest.

The story of how I fell in love with the game of softball is a story like no other. It was not love at first sight, that’s for sure. I didn’t pick up a bat and instantly fall in love. I didn’t eagerly press my face to the glass of the car window as we passed the high school softball fields and watch the older kids play while wishing the day that I can sprint around those bases come sooner. I didn’t ask Santa to bring me a softball glove and leave it under our Christmas tree instead of a Barbie doll. It wasn’t something I just knew I was destined to do. In fact, it was quite the opposite.

Our softball team had been practicing all week for softball state at the new evansville ball fields. We were excited to be the first team on these fields and the first team to win on these fields. We had caught, fielded, pitched, and hit so many softballs we were now unbeatable- “Practice makes perfect”.Everyone had attended these practices because they were so important that nobody had dared to skip, they were the key to our win. “Swing” was the team to beat. We are everyone’s rivals but our own. We never got down on anyone. We keep our spirits high through the best and worst parts of the games. Through losing, through winning, through anything, through everything thing, we were a team. That is why we one state.

Here I am, standing on the corner of second base. It is the top of the first inning with no outs. The pitcher goes into her windup and I take a hard lead off the bag. The ball hits the bat and I immediately take off to third. I hear the words, “down, down, down!” I slide into third and just as my left foot hits the bag I hear a very distinct, “pop!” I roll over on my side and I just lie there. The crowd is silent. Thee only thing I can hear is the voice in my head telling me something bad has just happened. I look up and see my coach standing over me. All I can do is cry. I think to myself, “it’s over.” “My hopes of ever becoming the softball player I always dreamt of are gone.” As I am helped up by my coach and the other team’s coach, I can

I felt like I could do anything. The moment was extremely surreal. I hadn’t accomplished anything so arduous in my life. The crowd’s cheers were thundering through my body. I had so much adrenaline coursing through my veins that I wasn’t even weary. People were jumping up and down, screaming in victory, and clapping so loud I couldn’t hear myself think. I couldn’t believe that I had just won the State Championship volleyball game.