I used to hate baseball and softball. During Braves games, I would wonder why the crowd enjoyed looking at a vast, largely empty field for hours upon hours, doing nothing but sitting. I did not understand why some catchers were better than others or why some pitchers had different deliveries. It was all nonsense to me, which is probably the reason I never covered a Grady softball game before this year.
For many years, the coverage of the Grady softball team had been inadequate. No one from The Southerner ever went to the team’s games or wrote feature stories on any key players on the team. After senior shortstop Abrahana James wrote us a meaningful letter to the editor last year, we could not ignore the issue any longer. This year we decided it would be different. The sports staff is currently on a mission to give every sporting event attention from the online newspaper or in print, and more importantly, we have resolved that no softball game will go uncovered.
As a sports editor, I knew it would be necessary to help take the lead in accomplishing our goal, so I signed up to cover as many softball games as I could. The first few games were rained out, but when it was finally time to cover a live game, I was terrified. I did not know anything about softball or baseball.
My fears were eased a little when I got to the game. On our bench was a group of lovely Grady parents who were more than willing to help me, and the girls gave me a warm welcome. Another member on the bench was our new athletic director, Kathleen Washington. It was great to see her showing support for the team.
The team had suffered quite a few losses in the beginning of the season, so everyone told me not to expect much. The Lady Knights were playing against the Chamblee Bulldogs, a very tough team, Coach Patrick Thomas, head coach of the softball team, told me.
The game started, and I began to furiously take notes. I took two pages of notes per inning. I assumed that if I wrote everything down, then I would be able to report on it, but that was not true because while my head was in the notes, I missed important things in the game. I slowly realized I had to immerse myself in the game to understand what was really going on.
So I did. I asked questions, took pictures, made jokes with parents and cheered loudly for our lady Knights. The girls, though losing through the first few innings, rallied in the fifth. The score was 9-3, but Grady scratched its way back, plating two runs and then shutting out Chamblee at the bottom of the inning. It was so exciting to see students I knew, like senior Kayla Valley and sophomore Tatyana Sampson, make amazing catches and cross home plate. I began to understand a sport that had always been foreign to me.
The game became really exciting at the top of the seventh inning, when Abrahana James, the same girl who wrote to us the year before, had a chance to tie up the game. I was on the edge of my seat. I even covered my eyes because I was so tense. It shocked me that I could be so immersed in the game.
Though James was not able to deliver the clutch hit on this occasion, the Grady parents and players were on their feet, screaming happily for their team.
It was an amazing experience to be transformed into a fan and a knowledgeable reporter. I may not be an expert on softball just yet, but when I report on the next game, at least I’ll know what “bases loaded” means.
