Last night our local Little League softball team played the Sauquoit Angels. It was a really good game. Not only was it close and played well by both teams, but more significant, was an act of obvious integrity by the Sauquoit third baseman.
This is what happened. Sauquoit was leading by several runs. We had a runner going to third. The ball was thrown to third, caught by the third baseman and the umpire called the runner out. Our own coach, who was at third base, pointed out that the baseman didn't tag the base. The umpire again called, "Out!"
It was then that a brave third baseman (probably 11 or 12 years old), spoke up. She told the umpire that indeed, she had missed the bag. I think this girl set a great example for all the other players, coaches and spectators. She could of remained quiet and let the play stand. Umpires can never be right all of the time. Instead she chose to speak up and make things right. This definately turned the tide for our team as we caught up in that inning.
The game continued and ended in our loss to Sauquoit by just one run. Many of our players were emotional and disappointed. It was their first loss of the season. I hope that what the girls remember is not that they lost the game, but instead that the opposing team member spoke up on their behalf. Hopefully, this is a lesson they will carry on into their own lives when the stakes are sometimes highter than in a Little League game.
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