Zachary plays little league football. Last year he played on Junior Freshman which is basically an instructional league. They don’t have real refs (parents volunteer to ref), they don’t keep score (don’t even get me started on that one), and no playoffs. However, Zack did exactly what that team was designed for, he learned. He learned to not be scared to hit or be hit, he learned what it meant to be on a team and he learned the game better.
As frustrating as it was to watch a game that didn’t keep score, we wanted Zack to stay down and play another season on Junior Freshman. Basically because he’s small. But…that wasn’t an option. He missed the cutoff to stay down by about two months. So up he went to Freshman where the weight class is up to a max of 125 pounds. Yes, I was nervous…in the beginning. He’s held his own nicely.
The Playoffs
Last weekend they played the other first place team in the league. This game determined who was first and who was second going into the playoffs. It was an intense game, but Zachary’s team won! The playoffs were today. After an intense start to the game, Zack’s team scored the first touchdown and just kept scoring after that!!
I don’t know if it was the 3rd or 4th quarter, but Zack was put in when the other team was at the goal line. To tell you I was nervous would be an understatement. They were at the goal line, for Pete’s sake! The play starts and I see the other teams player with the ball, getting closer to scoring a touchdown. Next thing you know, Zachary goes in for a touchdown with another teammate and together they brought him down, but not before Zachary took a major hit that left him laying on the field and not getting up.
What Happened?
My heart stopped at that moment and I just held my breath. I quickly scanned the field to see if I could find Zachary standing somewhere else, but I couldn’t. I just knew it was him laying there. The trainer and one of the coaches got Zachary up and helped him off the field. He was OK! Just took a hit to the groin area. But Zachary stopped the other team from getting a touchdown!! It was great. The very next play, the other team fumbled and we recovered the ball and scored a touchdown on the next play!
In the end, we won 33-9 and secured our spot in the Superbowl next weekend!! I am so happy and excited for our boys. They have worked so very hard for this and they are seeing that hard work does pay off in the end!!
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