Summer 2023 ball

105

That's the number of ball games we sat through this summer, over a span of 2.5 months. 

We averaged 10 games/week. 

It's no wonder the rock beds could use some weeding, we rarely sat around the kitchen table as a family of 5, and there was a pile of never-ending dirt at the back door. As though they brought half the field home with them every day.

But there is not one place we would rather be, than sitting near a field watching our kids play sports they love. 

Breaking this down a little, we'll start with the youngest. This year, Lincoln had a choice to play in the local 'travel' association, or stay with the city rec team. He chose the latter, signing up with a hockey buddy and a great family friend. We lucked out with an ah-mazing! coach, who found the importance of not only teaching the boys baseball skills, but also teaching them to keep their chins up, and reminding fans that this was about the boys. And man alive was it an incredible season. What started out a little like "Bad News Bears", ended with them catching pop flies, understanding rules and taking 3rd place in the championship tournament. Lincoln spent the majority of the season behind the plate, never afraid to catch....except when his buddy started throwing some heat! Remind us to get a lefty catchers glove before next year :) 

The girls, on the other hand, continue to play high level competitive softball. Sidney traded in her former team for an entirely new club this season. And it was literally the best decision she could have made. 

The story goes a little like this: in 2022, she played in a tournament game against a really really incredible team, whose coach looked like a literal jerk to his team during the game. Seriously, most of us wondered "why on earth would anyone want to play for him!".

 Sidney got the only hit in that game, walked off the field that night and said "I want to play for him next year". We all thought she had lost her marbles, Regan joked she wouldn't make it one single practice without crying. We were all wrong. During tryouts for the 2023 season, that coach remembered Sidney's hit in that game and offered her a spot on his team. 

She went on to be coached by one heck of a coach, who taught her more than she could have dreamed of learning, and who cared deeply about his team both on and off the field. Don't get me wrong, he was HARD on the team. And she did shed a few tears. But boy did we all have the most amazing year, and like to think when one door closes, another opens. And we are all so thankful for her opportunity to be coached by the infamous Jake, in his final year in MN. 

At the end of the year, the team gifted him heartfelt letters from each of the girls, along with a book of all the things he would holler to them in the middle of a game, that would make us all giggle, and make opponents cringe wondering "why on earth would anyone want to play for him!". 

Things like: Swing like a big girl
Are you mad, or is your hair just red?
Y'all better pick it up
Be a good teammate (knowing you were about to lay down a sacrifice bunt)
Don't make excuses, I'm in the solution business

We will miss his sarcasm, his passion for the game, and his deep desire to develop strong and confident teenage girls. Truly one of the best!

 With a core team of only 9 girls (we'd pick up players for a tournament here/there), Sidney got opportunities to play every single position except pitcher or catcher. Heck, she even caught bull-pen! And according to Regan "no one is above catching bull-pen". 

Sid was the definition of a utility player this year, though if she has her preference, would spend most of her time at first base. 

And last but not least, Regan's incredible season! This girl caught 110 innings over the course of the season. This may not seem like a lot, but if you average 4 innings/game (softball is stupid this way because games are time-limited in most cases), she caught nearly 75% of her teams' games. 

She was sore, and exhausted, but would never ever complain. She was thrilled to be behind the plate and quickly gained the confidence of her coaches to be calling her own game. It was incredible to watch her dominate the dish. Regan's team had a lot of success and growth this year, peeking just at the end of the season. 

She even had an opportunity to travel out of state with the 18's team at the end of the summer where she had a 2 run single to score the winning run(s) in extra innings! They promptly awarded her with the horse-shoe for her hit. 

Between both girls, we spent 26 nights in hotels, almost all of them in the month of July. It's a wonder we have time to work. We traveled to 5 different states in a matter of 5 weeks and became experts at playing Tetris with luggage and softball gear in the truck.

The map below of a two week road trip was a doozy! Just under 24 hours of driving, and it took a table top exercise to plan. Between the girls, there were six tournaments over a span of 4 states (plus one in MN at the end). 

We've done laundry in hotel sinks at 10pm because the washing machine is in use, using hairdryers to help the drying process. We spent more money on Panera (and Starbucks) than I care to admit this summer. I was constantly asking "what food should we pack for the field?". We are a well-oiled machine when it comes to navigating this routine. 

And do you see that scooter in the background?, Lincoln was a professional at dodging players, fans, foul balls....and sometimes Tournament Directors as he raced around each complex. 

Parents would giggle when they heard that we added an air tag to him so we could keep track of his whereabouts; it was a life-saver! 

Regan's team played in the Colorado Sparkler this summer. The backdrops on those fields were beyond incredible. And the downtime between games meant some amazing team bonding! I'll have to do another post on its own with more about that trip. 

As we hang up the cleats for a week before the next season's tryouts, I'm scrambling to weed the rock-beds, eat dinner as a family, and enjoy a dirt-free back door. I know darn well, this season of chaos will end for us too quickly, so for now, we are going to enjoy every second of it. 

2023 High School softball

What feels like forever ago, the girls wrapped up their high school softball season. Sidney on the 9th grade team, with a perfect record for the season and winning Best Defensive Player of the Year. 

Regan on the Varsity team, with some time behind the plate as well as in the field. At the end of the year banquet, Regan honored one of the senior players by giving Tatum's Senior speech. We all shed a few tears as she spoke confidently in front of a room full of 150 people. 

The sport is not always about the skills on the field, but the life-long skills learned along the way.

JHS 2022 season

The girls had an interesting 2022 season, playing nearly half of their games in the last 3 weeks of the season due to weather. Coupled with fielding extra-large teams due to record turn out and minimal cuts, it was definitely an experience. 

Regan and her pitcher Lizzie tend to pick up each season where they left off the prior season. They don't play together during the summer, fall or winter seasons as they are in different clubs. 

 Lizzie threw a no-hitter one game, with some credit to Regan for calling an excellent game and knowing where to send each ball.  They make quite the team. 

As high school ball would have it, occasionally we meet up with our summer teammates too. 

Regan and Shayden under the lights.

These girls earned Academic letters for their work in the classroom too. And of course, the ceremony was after a game so we all sprinted into the school, full of dirt and still wearing their uniforms. They sat front and center waiting for their names to be called recognizing their academic efforts. 

Regan worked hard behind the plate, serving as the primary catcher for JV. She caught all but approximately 10 innings the entire season. It was great to watch her improve and develop. 

By the time sections came along, there were more teammates playing in the same complex. They were getting pretty excited to get back on the fields together again. 

Sidney had an opportunity as well to meet up against a teammate. They were all smiles after the game, having split the double header and each taking home a win. 

I will never tire of looking at professional pictures of our girls in action. The focus and concentration, the form and all the hard work, paying off in a single image. 

Regan had an opportunity this season to dress/sit and occasionally pinch run on the Varsity team as well. She was happy to be asked to attend their game at the U of M fields one Saturday afternoon.

Playing on that field never gets old , and all the photo ops are pretty awesome too!

Especially when the moms jump in for a quick snap too :) 

With the weather as crummy as it was, Lincoln spent many games in my chair covered up like this, desperately wishing it was warmer so he could race around on his beloved dirt bike. 

Both girls had teams of 16 players, and unfortunately, that meant rotating positions. For the girls who primarily play club level ball, it was a little strange to spend time on the bench, rotating per the high school decisions on playing time. It also meant playing positions that aren't your first or second. Sidney was lucky to see most of her time at short and 3rd base, where she will spend her summer season as well. 

Regan attended the end of the season banquet (Sidney opted to skip and attend her summer club team practice), where she received her second letter of the year and Best Defensive Player. 

Congrats to your seasons girls, we're so proud of you both!