The Shot Heard 'Round New York

Alot of things went through my mind as I sat on the front row next to Wally Gardiner. I knew that there were hundreds of players back home in New York who were routing for Ali and the Gators, but also routing for Cassie and Alabama. For Ali, it was about her last season and for Cassie it was only the beginning.

I remember when every Tuesday and Thursday at 3:30pm I would peer out of the crack of my office door to see Maddy Coon sitting on the bench with her batting gloves and her bat ready to hit. Every Tuesday and Thursday 3:30pm-4:30pm faithfully. No days off. No excuses. Amazing focus and commitment. Back then I didn’t train as many girls because northeast softball was going thru an identity crisis and struggling with the philosophy of a baseball swing vs. a softball swing. I guess I couldn't understand how young girls from New York could dedicate their entire young lives to a game that never gave them the ultimate taste of greatness. You never hear of NY girls on that particular stage. Never. One of my students said she watched the CWS this year and heard all of the players saying where they were from, California, Florida, Arizona, Texas. And then when Ali Gardiner said Hi, I am Ali Gardiner from Waccabuc, NY it sounded funny. Haha. It somehow sounded out of place. Where did we get this inferiority complex as players when it comes to playing “Big Time” softball. Well, its easy to develop a complex when you don’t know anyone who has ever made it. When no one from your state, county, or town has ever been there. But girls from the West Coast expect to make it big. They don’t think they would fail. In fact, they know they are superior which is what makes them sort of superior -if you know what I mean.

So when I see Ali Gardiner, Maddy Coon, and Cassie Boccia, three New York young women batting in the middle of the line-up for top 5 teams in the country, I really see all the young girls back home who now have hope. They know they can go as far as they want to. They can now see themselves there. It is so important to be able to see yourself there. So those girls on that stage have gone from "Role" Models to "Real" Models.

So it was two outs, two strikes, bottom of the seventh, bases loaded, and the team down by 3. We all know what happened next but what made it even sweeter was the struggle prior to the shot. I said to myself it is very important for her to come through here. Not just for the Gators but for everyone back home watching. Here was a heroine in her own right. Not because of what she was about to do but because of where she was.

I see big things for softball, especially in Northeast. I am finding that so many players with talent are seeking out proper instruction in order to hone their skills. This is a huge change from 5 years ago, even 3 years ago.

I would like to congratulate the class of 2009 hitters that I had privledge of sharing with:

Nikki Maier (Conn) - Maryland
Courtney Liddle (VA) - VA Tech
Taylor Williams (VA) - UVA
Sammy Erosa (NY)- UPENN
Dominique Marcelino (Conn) - St. John's
KD Rohlander (NJ) - Fordham University
Lauren Gibson (MD) - Tennessee
Stephanie Caso (NY) - UPENN
Jordan Haines (PA) - U of Hartford
Liz Tutino (Conn) - Harvard
Kelly Cianciata (NJ) - Georgetown
Caitlyn Schultze (NY) - Auburn
Cyndil Matthew (NJ) - UMASS

Its gonna be way too expensive to see all of you play in college but I will do my best. You all have no idea how much of an effect/affect you have on the next class of hitters. I encourageyou to not just go there, but BE there. And whether you play on the big stage or not, everyone still hears your shot.

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.” –Theodore Roosevelt