February 7, 2001
|
It's hard to explain just what it feels like when you realizethe season is really here. All the pre-game warm-ups are a lot likepractice has been for the last four months. Even the introductions andNational Anthem are pretty familiar. It doesn't really hit you untilyou sprint out on the field and stand there waiting for the first pitch.
For a second, you feel like you're at the top of arollercoaster, looking out over the edge and realizing at the same timejust how high up you are and that in a few seconds, your stomach isgoing to be up in your throat. It's exciting and nerve-racking andbeing thankful for the opportunity to be doing this all rolled up intoone moment.
And then the first pitch is delivered and it becomes a gameagain.
"All right Tori!" I shouted from the outfield as our pitcher(Tori Nyberg) fired the first pitch of the game in for a called strike."Way to get ahead."
'It's going to be a good year,' I thought. You see, softballand baseball players are notoriously superstitious and getting the firstpitch of the season over for a strike is like a good omen, a great wayto set the tone for the year. Getting the first batter out is evenbetter and that's just what Tori did. A ground out to third base andjust like that, you could almost hear everyone on the field take a deepbreath and relax.
Pretty soon, the top first inning was over and I was sprintingback into the dugout. We didn't waste much time settling into a groove.Our third batter of the game, Jessica Mendoza, launched a two-run homerover the right-centerfield fence and the entire team raced out of thedugout to meet her at home plate.
Even though we only managed to score two more runs on the day,everyone left the game feeling good. We'd won. That was all thatmattered. Yes, everybody had things that they needed to work on,adjustments that they could make for tomorrow's games, but for at leasta little while, it was time to just enjoy this win. Enjoy being out inthe sun, playing a game that you love with teammates that you also callfriends. Time to dance to "All Right Now" and jump up with our armsraised on the "5, 6, 7, 8" part and scream "Whoo!" at the top of ourlungs.
Kind of like the first part of a rollercoaster ride.