Four Straight
David Andrews
David Andrews
In recent years, baseball has become one of the most overlooked sports in the nation. What was once America’s favorite past time, is now the forgotten middle child in the sports world today. People have called it unexciting , dull, and just plain old boring. In fact, in a survey done by the Gallup, it show that baseball has reached its lowest point ever in popularity, with only nine percent of Americans saying it is their favorite. Many people have began treating the major leagues like it is just a major waste of time, but here at Hillgrove things are a little bit different.
These boys found a way of actually making baseball exciting, and the students certainly enjoy it. The boys have a passion for the game, and that passion has translated in to nothing but wins. Monday the boys even managed to secure their fourth straight region championship, with hopes of bringing much more than that along the way. Not only did they clinch their fourth straight region championship, but they did it in great fashion by winning on senior night.
For most of these boys, this could be their last chance of ever winning a title so they are certainly giving it their all. Player Justin Tew, even said that “anything less than a state championship would be a disappointment” for them, so these boys could care less about a region because there is a bigger task at hand. After all, they have won region four years in a row so it is only a matter of time that they raise the bar a bit higher and get the one thing that has alluded this school for so many years.
In terms of talent, the team has a lot of it and they certainly know it with Mason Curtis calling it “the best team of his Hillgrove career.” But it takes much more than just skill when it comes to winning. Shortstop Wade Richardson said that the one thing they lack most at times is focus. They often get complacent and comfortable with leads, and that is what cost them a seven to one lead on Monday against North Cobb. When asking Coach Alverson what he says to his players when they lose focus and get too confident, he said simply nothing. “The player lead teams are the ones who win championships,” and it is up to them to keep their hand in the game and focus at the task at head. He said, “they have all the tools to win, it is up to them to use them.”
The one player that uses his “tools” the most is pitcher Ethan Wright. Alverson said that when Ethan is at the mound his attitude tends to have a snowball effect on the other players that leads to success. Like players Reid Brown and Brennan Richardson, Ethan said that the one thing he does is play every game like it is his last, and with the playoffs next Wednesday, the next few games they play might actually be their last.
This core group has been together for years and the reason they have stayed together for so long is because the all have one common goal, a state championship. Not only do you need focus in order to be successful on the state level, but you need to have chemistry and these boys have just that. Cameron Fiveash said that the amount of chemistry they have, both on and off the field, makes communicating and sacrificing for the betterment of the team a lot easier.
The boys have been going at this season with a sense of urgency that can indeed get them a title, but some factors to winning are not always in their control. A thing that the boys like to call karma, meaning you get out what you put in, plays a big role in how far they will go. Austin Heard and Fred Wilson both described it as a form of luck, to an extent, because if the ball does not fall your way it could cost you your season. Coach Alverson even brought up the 2011 team that went to state. He said that the bases were loaded and a hit, that would have normally been a single, hit a sprinkler and ended up being a home run. Things like that can change the entire game, but the boys are confident that their play will overcome it because they put championship level work in and they believe that is what they will get out.
As seniors, they try to lead by example and keep the tradition of going a hundred and ten percent going strong. They try to go into each game with a certain sense of professionalism and pride for their school, the game they love, and the brotherhood. As said earlier this group has been together since middle school, and, win or lose, nothing can tear them apart. Their careers at Hillgrove is like a story awaiting its fairy tale ending, and it is solely up to them to write it they way they see fit, with a state championship.
These boys found a way of actually making baseball exciting, and the students certainly enjoy it. The boys have a passion for the game, and that passion has translated in to nothing but wins. Monday the boys even managed to secure their fourth straight region championship, with hopes of bringing much more than that along the way. Not only did they clinch their fourth straight region championship, but they did it in great fashion by winning on senior night.
For most of these boys, this could be their last chance of ever winning a title so they are certainly giving it their all. Player Justin Tew, even said that “anything less than a state championship would be a disappointment” for them, so these boys could care less about a region because there is a bigger task at hand. After all, they have won region four years in a row so it is only a matter of time that they raise the bar a bit higher and get the one thing that has alluded this school for so many years.
In terms of talent, the team has a lot of it and they certainly know it with Mason Curtis calling it “the best team of his Hillgrove career.” But it takes much more than just skill when it comes to winning. Shortstop Wade Richardson said that the one thing they lack most at times is focus. They often get complacent and comfortable with leads, and that is what cost them a seven to one lead on Monday against North Cobb. When asking Coach Alverson what he says to his players when they lose focus and get too confident, he said simply nothing. “The player lead teams are the ones who win championships,” and it is up to them to keep their hand in the game and focus at the task at head. He said, “they have all the tools to win, it is up to them to use them.”
The one player that uses his “tools” the most is pitcher Ethan Wright. Alverson said that when Ethan is at the mound his attitude tends to have a snowball effect on the other players that leads to success. Like players Reid Brown and Brennan Richardson, Ethan said that the one thing he does is play every game like it is his last, and with the playoffs next Wednesday, the next few games they play might actually be their last.
This core group has been together for years and the reason they have stayed together for so long is because the all have one common goal, a state championship. Not only do you need focus in order to be successful on the state level, but you need to have chemistry and these boys have just that. Cameron Fiveash said that the amount of chemistry they have, both on and off the field, makes communicating and sacrificing for the betterment of the team a lot easier.
The boys have been going at this season with a sense of urgency that can indeed get them a title, but some factors to winning are not always in their control. A thing that the boys like to call karma, meaning you get out what you put in, plays a big role in how far they will go. Austin Heard and Fred Wilson both described it as a form of luck, to an extent, because if the ball does not fall your way it could cost you your season. Coach Alverson even brought up the 2011 team that went to state. He said that the bases were loaded and a hit, that would have normally been a single, hit a sprinkler and ended up being a home run. Things like that can change the entire game, but the boys are confident that their play will overcome it because they put championship level work in and they believe that is what they will get out.
As seniors, they try to lead by example and keep the tradition of going a hundred and ten percent going strong. They try to go into each game with a certain sense of professionalism and pride for their school, the game they love, and the brotherhood. As said earlier this group has been together since middle school, and, win or lose, nothing can tear them apart. Their careers at Hillgrove is like a story awaiting its fairy tale ending, and it is solely up to them to write it they way they see fit, with a state championship.
