A Time That I Was at My Best
By: Brian Seda
This summer I feel like it was a time that I was truly at my best. I played baseball for the North Tama Redhawks and we made it to the state tournament in Des Moines, Iowa for the first time since 2003. The whole year we were considered to be a very average team. I knew that we had the potential to become a great team and towards the end of the year we did just that.
I feel that I was truly at my best when we entered the tournament. I knew that it was important for me to play first base to the best of my ability. I was one of only four seniors on the team, so I knew that it was important to be a leader on our team. Our first game was against GMG and we were favored to win pretty easily. It was a very tough first round game but we ended up winning 3-2.
The next round game was against Don Bosco and we were not expected to win. We played an extremely good game with no errors at all. This game I was at my best by scooping a couple of the balls that were in the dirt at first base. We ended up winning the game 1-0 and we advanced to take on Gladbrook-Reinbeck in the district final.
This game was probably the toughest game in the tournament for us. We got down 3-1 and this was the first time in the tournament that we had trailed in a game. This game I was at my best by not allowing our team to give up hope and we continued to battle at the plate and on defense. As a team we battled back and tied the game up at 3-3. Then in the top of the seventh inning we took the lead 4-3 and we went on to win the game 4-3. We were district champions and we were headed to the sub-state final to take on BGM.
The whole tournament we were the underdogs and this game was no different. BGM was ranked seventh in the state and the had a record of 26-3. On the other hand we were 20-12 and we were not ranked. This game I was at my best by going 1-3 with a single and a run batted in. We ended up pulling off the major upset 7-2. We advanced to the state tournament for the sixth time in school history and the first time since 2003. We were the number eight seed in the tournament and we lost to the number one seed Bishop-Garrigan Algona 3-1.
I feel that the whole baseball season I was at my best by being a senior leader on the team. Earlier on in the year we were 7-10 and struggling to find ways to win. I knew that I had to step up and let the guys know that we could become a great team. We ended up having a record of 21-13 and ended the year going 14-3. I was at my best by being the leader in batting average, hits, home runs, and runs batted in on the team.
I feel that this feeling of being a great leader and being at my best will help me here at Iowa State. I know that if you keep working hard then you can have great success in whatever you pursue. I am going to transfer this feeling of being at my best at ISU by continuing to always try to get the best grades possible. I am going to keep working hard in the classroom here at Iowa State, so that I can be at my very best and pursue my life-long goals.
You were a good baseball player. I recall playing against your team in Fredericksburg. You were pretty easy to pick out considering you were twice as tall as anybody on the team. It is really cool that you guys made it to state. I wish we could have made it as well. But you win some and you lose some.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you were able to help carry the team morally when they weren't quite fighting the fight. Being one of the only seniors on a team can be very difficult since it is your last year playing and they have more years ahead of them. This will be a time and a team you'll never forget!
ReplyDeleteBeing a great baseball player is a lot more than just being able to field, hit, and throw. There are intangibles that only some players have. Without great leadership a team will never get very far, it seems that you provided that for your team. Even after only knowing you for a very short time, I can already tell how great of a leader you are. I think that you should try to get in a leadership role around campus because you have been gifted in that area. Keep pushing yourself and you can succeed in every area of life!
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