Middleton Softball Perseveres

Everywhere you look, the struggles of the Middleton High School softball team are apparent. From the scorebooks that show 18 of their 19 games have been called early due to the mercy-rule, to the 4A District 9 standings that the Tigers have finished at the bottom of in consecutive seasons.

Their lone notch in the win column this year came in a forfeit. Last season they were winless.

But sitting in the stands behind the wire fence backstop, if you only close your eyes for a moment, that all disappears.

You can hear the Tigers dugout chanting on their teammates on the field.

“Tell me what you need, Tiger Pride! Tiger Pride!”

The raucous crowd of friends and family members letting out shrieks and gasps every time a bat, with a sharp DING!, finds a piece of the ball.

And if you just ignore the scoreboard – it’s precocious anyways and rarely reads the correct score – you might think they were in the final inning of a closely fought game.

After a ground ball escapes the infield into the grass of centerfield an encouraging cry comes from the stands.

“Come on, girl! Put that new glove to use!”

One of the loudest members of the crowd, Isaiah Francis, was out cheering on his old high school and his younger sister, junior outfielder and team captain Kenyata Francis.

“We try to make it out to all the home games to cheer the girls on,” Isaiah said.

Irrespective of the score, the Tigers play every at-bat, every out, showing respect to the game and to their opponents; respect that is not always reciprocated.

Coach Robert Dodson, who has been at the helm for two seasons without picking up a victory on the diamond, admits things haven’t been easy, but he has nothing but praise for the girls on his roster.

He compares them to a Webble-Wobble, the children’s toy that you can knock down over and over again, but it always pops right back up.

“These girls haven’t had the opportunities that some others have had,” Dodson says of his players, many of whom are completely new to the game. “They didn’t grow up playing in leagues.”

But there is still hope for the team. They are young. None of the players that were on the field two years ago when Middleton picked up its last victory are still on the team. They had no seniors. Over half were freshman this school year. There is opportunity for growth ahead.

When they return to the diamond late next winter, they will continue the search for that elusive win. And maybe they’ll get it. Either way those bleachers behind the backstop will hold their supports, cheering them on just the same.