I needed to wait a day to write this. It would not have been productive if I tried to write about the game last night. Too many emotions involved. Disappointment at the way we played. Anger at the officiating. Sympathy towards the guys leaving. Embarrassment at the way we chose to react to tough situations. Sadness because of the fact that I may not get to see a few of these guys again for a long time. And what will make this worse is that next week, when I am at the field and getting it ready for the sectional games, I will go through all of these emotions again. It truly is a disheartening situation. However...
One game does not define our season. It only ends it. The Streaks finished their season a very respectable 26-10. And, it was filled with moments that I will never forget:
the walk-off home runs by Chad and Cody (which couldn't have happened to any better young men).
Colton Crain's fiasco at Wrigley
dealing with this season's weather
the emotional low and subsequent high of the second East Peoria game
Karen Mitchell stopping play at Rock Island because she was on the field
two triple plays
a no hitter
waking up way too early in the a.m. to eat breakfast with the coaches at Spudo's before weekend games
and simply being around baseball and these boys
It comes down to this. What makes coaching high school sports so special is that it provides an unique opportunity to build relationships between coach and player. For me, this happens every year and this year was no different. I have now been around long enough that I see past players out and about...some with families of their own. And, when they talk about their high school playing days, they always seem to remember them fondly...no matter what their record was. It is a privilege to be able to coach these kids during a time in their lives when it is truly more important to teach them about life than it is to teach them the X's and O's of a given sport. Sometimes, things don't work out the way you envision it. That is a part of life. And, our guys learned that yesterday.
As for the blog...First, I need to say thanks to the people reading it. I never thought it would take off the way it did. When I get the stats from Rob I will update those one more time. I am also going to attempt to keep things going through the summer. I will say attempt as this summer may be a very hectic time for me. Any time now, my wife could deliver our first child. The blog, I am guessing, may take a back seat after that happens. Although, it may give me something to do during those late night/early morning feedings.
Thank you for your support of the Silver Streaks. They deserve it.
Go Streaks!
