Monday, June 9, 2008 10:26 PM CDT
Community welcomes MHS softball team home
By AMBER WILLIAMS, Staff Writer
awilliams@jg-tc.com
MATTOON — Members of the Mattoon High School girls’ softball team didn’t mind standing out a little while they were at the IHSA state tournament this week.
While other teams would go out to dinner in T-shirts and athletic wear, the Lady Green Wave girls would dress up in nice clothing and look like ladies, said George Reed, assistant coach. These girls stood out among all the other teams because they exemplified what it means to be classy, he said.
The entire teams’ behavior is something that should make Mattoon and Mattoon High School proud, Reed said.
“They have done things with class all weekend, all year, all season,” Reed said.
The history-making team returned from Peoria on Saturday evening to a reception with a cheering crowd at Mattoon High School. The team placed second in the IHSA Class 3A state championship, the best any team has done in the history of MHS.
The busload of softball players pulled up to the high school about 6:30 p.m. Saturday followed by a long line of honking vehicles welcoming them home. Once inside, the team was greeted by family and friends who stood and cheered for the them as their newly won trophies were displayed in the center of the gymnasium.
Player Lydia Hilgenberg echoed the words of Reed, saying that the Mattoon girls did not mind standing out among the other teams when they went out at night dressed in their best clothes, sometimes soliciting looks from the other teams.
“Ladies can play softball and we showed them,” she said.
The softball players are also proud of their immense accomplishment in getting the state runner-up spot.
The team worked hard to get to the point that they did this year and were able to exceed expectations, said player Aubrey Frank.
“I am really happy for what we accomplished,” Frank said.
Head Coach Dave McDowell said that this team was special because although they had losses throughout the season, the team would use each loss as a learning experience. Win or lose, they kept wanting to improve how they played, he said.
“These kids showed up every day, they worked hard and they improved,” McDowell said.
The seniors on the team took on a leadership role this year without even being asked to do so, McDowell said. The girls would plan breakfasts before games or organize a sack lunch for the team.
The girls did their own team-building and just worked together really well as a group, their coach said. McDowell noted the team had five graduating seniors who will be going on to college next year.
“You can’t replace the personalities; you can’t replace the chemistry,” he said.
Contact Amber Williams at awilliams@jg-tc.com or 238-6858.
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Poster51 wrote on Jun 9, 2008 7:55 AM: