Lack of support hits home

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As the clinking of bats and the jeering from the opposing team ceases, the one sharp sound in the ball player’s mind is the roar of the adoring crowd. All of a sudden, the player steps up to bat, while the cacophony dissipates to a low murmur, and the expectant onlookers anticipate the crack of the bat.
The player soars from home base, as he swiftly skips around the field to carry through his home run. His confidence was magnified through the cheers and applause from his audience.
Without a supportive community, Freedom baseball, and other sports, might lack the assertiveness needed to win the game.
As of April 25, the baseball team is fourteen games into their season. At these games, many attend, but barely any of the spectators are students. Because of this, most members of the team feel that they aren’t getting the recognition they deserve.
The team doesn’t lack support completely, as their family members and close friends do attend; however, without a strong student section, it seems to them as if they’re less important than football, soccer or other sports who do have screaming fans lining the bleachers.
Besides their family and close friends, the baseball team’s main source of encouragement emanates from the coaches and their teammates. If you stand behind home plate, you can’t miss their chants: “Let’s go One, Two” or “Here we go, Nine.” The coaches also provide constructive criticism that not only helps the players make accurate judgements, but gets them in good spirits as well.
Those people do boost their confidence, and at times they’re enough, but students could do so much more. There is a different kind of pride when fellow students or friends cheer when a teammate earns a run or shouts as a player slides into home.
“Freedom baseball is a sport that is just kind of brushed off,” Senior Jacob Moldovan said.
Many other students in the school, who play sports other than football or basketball, feel as though they don’t get enough credit for the hours of work they put in.
Baseball is a lot more than just a bat. All team members have to be fast to be able to run the bases before your opponent tags them out, they have to be precise in their aim when they are up at bat, pitchers must keep their eyes on several places at once to make sure a member of the opposing team doesn’t steal a base and outfielders must keep their eyes on the ball constantly in order to catch ball that potentially will get an opposing player out.
“All sports are difficult, but baseball is really hard because one weak point on a team could result in many errors and could lose the game,” Sophomore Josh Beck said.
As of April 25, they have won seven games and lost seven.
“People did not support the soccer team until they proved they were good, and only then did they get support,” Senior Garin Piehler said.
A sports team shouldn’t have to prove to people that they are working hard. Even though they haven’t won very many, they are still doing their best. The team should get support no matter what their record is.
Even as the information is advertised throughout the school, students don’t seem to participate unless they are required to for a class. Football gets fans from the Big Red Marching Band and Freedom’s student section. Soccer also has a student section that occasionally even rides the bus to the away games.
“The game times are always broadcasted on DTV, but nobody shows up. It seems like nobody cares,” Moldovan said.
There are some students who feel inferior to sports who have assemblies and pep rallies. Football, wrestling, soccer and cheerleading have received their own assemblies this year. Where are the rallies for softball, track, golf, basketball and hockey?
“I mean, considering everyone else gets an assembly, and neither baseball nor softball get anything, I find it a little unfair,” Senior Timothy Hampe said.
Students may argue that they don’t attend games due to a sport’s record. Although, this point is only one side of the story. Perhaps, a team could perform better with hype from a crowd of adoring fans.
“A big crowd definitely helps build energy and momentum,” Piehler said.
If you would like to be a part of this energy-building crowd in the Freedom sports community, there are three sports currently having meets or games: baseball, softball and track and field. If you don’t like being a spectator, join a team during the 2016-2017 season. Support is needed from both the crowd and the players.