I remember back when I was playing high school sports, in the days of wooden tennis rackets and my prized Tracy Austin Pony shoes. Okay, so I’m dating myself a bit, but the point I’m about to get to still rings true today.
My twin sister and I, a formidable doubles tandem, had pretty good success with the exception of two teams — Livonia Stevenson and Lakeland. Those two teams provided a wall that we just couldn’t scale or find a way around, regardless of what we did. It wasn’t for lack of ability or talent; the ladies we faced were just one notch above our game and eked out the coveted wins every darned time we faced them. It mattered not if we were on the indoor carpet courts or on the outdoor hard courts. No matter how many lobs, slices or drop shots we threw at them, they always managed to get to them. We almost got past Lakeland several times, but as we all know, close only counts in horseshoes and perhaps the Lottery.
Several girls’ soccer teams found themselves facing similar walls in their district tournaments last week, and they did little but bang their heads against that wall. Lapeer East was given a major headache by Div. 2 No. 4-ranked Auburn Hills Avondale, which sent them packing after a one-sided, 5-1, win. Davison’s team suffered a similar fate against Saginaw Heritage, which shut them out of the post-season title run on their home field. That’s adding insult to injury.
Last weekend was a similar tale, with just the teams and the sports changing. Shutout was the name of the game at the North Branch Div. 2 softball and baseball brackets. The Goodrich boys’ team, which has just four losses on the season, mercied Linden in six innings, 10-0. Across the complex at the softball diamond, Metro champ Lapeer West matched that, blanking Flint Powers Catholic, 10-0. The major difference in that game? A key bases-loaded home run smacked by freshman Kim Brown with West leading 4-0. You could just see how deflated the Chargers became as they realized their title quest was about to end.
In the Flint Kearsley districts, teams faced more of what I experienced first hand; coming up against kids that had just a little more experience and a few more weapons in their arsenal. The games were not shutouts, but one-sided nonetheless, ending the dreams of district trophies just shy of the podium. No one wants to lose a district trophy, and especially by one run, as the Kearsley softball team did.
One run, one point, one goal; it matters not, because regardless of the contest and the final outcome, the final scores often don’t show the effort and desire exhibited by the losing team. It’s easy to simply just give up in the face of defeat, and the frustrations were written all over the faces of the losing teams as they saw their seasons come to end much sooner than they had wanted. However, the solo efforts exhibited in trying times proved time and time again that the game isn’t over until it’s over and that perseverance and fortitude is what makes a winner.
As one Lapeer West mom and I were discussing, these kids are as tough as nails and will battle until someone pulls them off the field bleeding and gasping for air. They’d just as soon spit on their wounds, tape them up and forge on, blocking out the pain until after the game. Cracked ribs, twisted ankles, broken fingers and toes all go unnoticed for the most part as competition drives the players onward. It’s in learning how to deal with those adversities and tough competitors that the underdogs learn to scale those walls. It’s a long way around or a perilous fall from the top, but well worth the journey, bumps and bruises.

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