7-8 Stars go down fighting
After their exciting come-from-behind win over Taylor County Saturday morning, Lamar's 7/8 softball all stars fell to powerful Jones County 12-1 and were edged 10-9 by Whitfield County to be eliminated from the Dixie Darling State Tournament in Butler.
The reasons are obvious to those that follow programs like theirs... They put a priority on these programs, and are committed to doing whatever it takes to make them the success that they are... It's their passion, their pride, and their community identities.
Festivals and concerts are great, but shouldn't the local youth sports programs at the rec level, middle school, & high school levels mean more than just something to do. Sometimes it appears that sports are just an after-thought. When the season is over, everybody forgets about it until the next season rolls around...
There is no off season, if you want to be more than average in these endeavors. Off the soapbox, now. Kudos to the young ladies and their respective coaches for a job well-done.
HOWEVER when you talk about middle and high school sports you should think that academics are more important than sporting events. Put your head in the right place and think about education above sports. That has been a problem for years. Cut academic funding but God forbid they cut the precious football budget.
Many school administrators were athletes & coaches prior to becoming headmasters of private schools, principal & superintendents of public schools, community leaders, and CEO(s) of high profile organizations. Participating in sports activities involves a part of the educational process of becoming a well-rounded person.
The classroom and the playing field both have their purposes, and complement each other in an adolescent's physical and mental development. Step-back and view the big picture. It seems that you aren't seeing the forest for looking at the trees.
As for Teamwork, physical conditioning, learning how to compete, developing self-esteem, adhering to strict rules & guidelines, learning to make sacrifices for the success of the team, developing self-discipline, learning respect for authority, developing a strong work ethic, developing leadership skills, etc., etc. Sports is not the only place to learn these values. It is obvious that only a jock would believe this. There are many youth groups, organizations, and activities other than sports where this these values can be learned. I do believe it is you that can't see the forest for the trees because only someone who is blind would believe that sports is where all values the above mentioned values are learned.
That's BS, and a cop-out. Excuses are for losers. Yeah, and all the while that the locals in LC are taking time off, the competition is working to be better than you are... Pike Co. & Jones Co. ain't about more money than LC, in making their youth programs a success.
They're about commitment, pride, & leadership in their community toward their youth programs being successful. They're obsessed with being the best at what they do, and have a huge amount of passion for it. They're just a different breed of folks, and that's what it all boils down to... You'll get out of it, what you put into it.