When I first arrived at Rotunda D I thought to myself great I get to stand the whole time because there is not one open seat. Dean Nickels started the event off by introducing Scott Naggy, head boys basketball coach. Naggy then talked a little about how they recruit players for South Dakota State University. He then introduced two of his players. The first was from the West side of Chicago, he talked about how he would play basketball to escape from the hardships of growing up in West Chicago. The second player was from Michigan, he explained how basketball was the main sport played in that area. He explained how the teachers there didn't care how the students do in there class they will just pass them to get rid of them. He…
It was a hot summer day in Rayville,Louisiana. My 12 year old All-Star season was going great, even though we had only played a few games. Little did I know that this game would change my whole baseball career.…
It was the middle of the summer and I was playing baseball in Jackson, Mississippi. I was playing for the Goodlettsville All-Stars. We were playing in the little league 10u world series. To get to the championship we had to win 8 games and it was single elimination. We had won 7 out of 8 games and we were playing our 8th game and it was the bottom of the third and I was playing left field. In the second inning I was felling drowsy so my dad gave me a Snickers and a Red Bull. I was for sure not drowsy anymore. I could feel the sugar rushing through my veins and I was on the balls of my feet waiting for the pitch to be thrown. When my pitcher threw the ball I had my hand in my glove ready for the ball if it was hit to me. WHAM! The ball was hit so far up in the air it looked like it hit the sun. When I realized that the ball was coming to me I was way too far back so I had to run as fast as I could and dive for the ball. I jumped as far as I could and stretched as far as I could. I barely caught it by snow coning the ball. Everybody was so proud of me that the screamed as loud as they could. We went on to win the game 4-1. The next day I woke up, jumped out of the bed, and put my uniform on. I was so excited, I was in the championship! I…
It all began with a simple phone call one night after dinner. “Joe,” my father hollered up the stairs, “it’s for you. It’s Jackie, and she sounds upset.” As I came downstairs to pick up the phone, I was not happy. I was tired and had looked forward to a nice and quiet evening at home, not another stupid adventure with Jackie.…
In ninth-grade, I was on the C team and my basketball coach explained to me that it was because he wanted to keep me and my sister together. However, my tenth-grade season came and I was again on the C team, while my younger sister was on the JV team. I was devastated. I had never felt like so much of a failure. My younger sister was better than me and I just wanted to quit. But, how could I give up on something I had put so many years into? Then I realized that I am not my sister and her talents are not my talents. I could contribute differently from her. So, I continued to work hard and my efforts paid off. Junior year I was starting for the JV team and it was clear that my improvements are what I truly cared…
I was an eight year old kid when I had my first ever glimpse of the NBA Basketball. It was a lanky afro manchild doing a reverse dunk versus Indiana right in front of the Laker crowd. Crowd was in awe, Commentators were ecstatic and Kevin Harlan in his usual voice saying, Kobe can’t be denied. That day, my love affair with the Los Angeles Lakers started.…
To express his believe about stretching one’s limit, the great Guy Finley had once stated, “The limit of your present understanding is not the limit of your possibilities.” Inspired by his quote, I, Giang Pham, believe that I would be a valuable member of McGarvin’s Academic Pentathlon team. Based on my personal knowledge of Pentathlon, I have first-handedly experience the soul of a Pentathlete through various study sessions at Ethan Allen. Because of this, I have developed a deep insight of the components necessary to be a true Pentathlete. In addition to having first-hand experience, I also have extremely high expectations for both myself and other students, for it is essential in my academic growth. With this, one like myself could ultimately…
As a kid, I always wanted to play professional baseball and live up to my dream to play in the MLB. I had high expectations for myself, and I was really determined to achieve my goal and live a successful life. I was convinced for a long time that playing baseball was the right choice for me, but that has changed over some time. As time has passed, I now have a different mindset; to work in the field of criminal justice. Success is the accomplishment of one’s goals, and I now have a new goal that I wish to accomplishment later on in my life. I hope to work in this field by first enlisting in the military, then becoming a police officer, and finally work my way up to a higher position. If I can achieve these goals during my life time, then I…
Once there was a time where there was a kid from Willacoochee, Georgia, that had great talent for baseball. He played left field, first base, and pitcher. His name was Conner Johnson ,he lived in a small town named Willacoochee, and going to the starting ninth grade. Conner was six feet tall and could four feet into the air. His first year, he played a excellent first game.…
I have had multiple experiences with being on a team. For over a year I have played with a group of friendly people on a Minecraft server and have worked as a team building with this team / group of friends. I have learned a lot from them and I have offered them a lot of advice too. I am very skilled in working in teams as I have played with one for a long…
In baseball there is an enigma of a pitch called the knuckle ball, which is very difficult for batters to hit because the the ball moves unpredictably in different directions. Often time it feels like life is like trying to hit a home-run off a knuckle ball. When this happens, When life throws us something unexpected we must learn to adapt and respond appropriately.. I learned this when first entering choir as a sophomore with the firm notion that being a bold and strong leader was always the best way to be. Life was about to pitch me a crazy surprise.…
Soccer is a very competitive sport. I didn’t play for too long, but i enjoyed it while i played. I was very aggressive and active. Soccer is a sport that you have to use both of those skills. It was a hard game but i liked it at the time. As i grew up, i became fascinated in baseball. I never got to play but i always loved to watch games on tv. I also love to go to Pirates games. Andrew Mccutchen has always been my favorite player. I even have an autographed picture of him. I love to watch the movie 42 about Jackie Robinson. It is interesting to learn about his career in baseball. He stood up to racism and became a very talented and famous baseball player. I look up to him in many ways. Baseball to me is a big part of America. It has a big…
One extremely important activity outside of the classroom that has helped me grow as an individual is Church League basketball at my local YMCA. From the outside looking in this league seems to be a form of glorified pick-up basketball with referees and a scoreboard but there is so much more to it. Almost half way through my junior year my father convinced me to try out for the varsity basketball team at school in November to which I hesitated at first but later gave in and tried out only to be cut. At first I was upset because I had never been cut from a team and I was unsure of how to handle it and what to do with my free time. This prompted me to reach out to God and ask him for a sense of direction and purpose in this time of my life to which He responded with a friend inviting me to Church League basketball. Once I experienced a few scrimmages and practices I decided to commit to playing Church League and coming to all of the…
During one game of basketball I was making a lot shots. When I was running super fast and one of the players on the green team tripped me and then I slid on my back and on the back of our jerseys the numbers are like the grippy kind so then I go the biggest skin mark on my back and my spine was bleeding but i didn't know it until I got home. But during that whole game my back was hurting so I timed out. I Told coach to check my back because it was hurting the whole game.…
With this mindset, I focused my attention on making the basketball team my junior year. Every day, after marching band rehearsal, I would practice dribbling in my garage, rap or rock blaring through the speakers that had I set up. The weights that used to gather dust, rusting away in the corner, gained a new purpose as I performed a wide arrangement of exercises, ranging from curls to squats. The heated air, accompanied by the occasional breeze, and the concrete pavement was my…