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Lake Oconee News Friday, September 29,2017 Page C6 Justin Hubbard/Staff The Morgan County softball team and coaches pose with Mary Trent Chandler, Sadie Worth and Katee Finney (back row, middle), the team's three seniors, as part of Monday's senior night festivities in Madison. Softball Continued from Cl genuinely want what’s best for them. When it comes to decision-making on the weekend, when it comes to grades, tutoring, those three girls genuinely care about the rest of this team. And that’s what we’re gonna miss most. They’re great ball players on top of that, but the quality of people that they are is something that you can’t replace.” The experience of playing every position in one game was exciting for Chandler. Late in the game, she speared a ground ball at shortstop and fired a throw to first to record the out. She had just moved over from third base to swap spots with regular shortstop Alissa Webb. Chandler said just about every fielding position was new to her, which made the experience all the more memorable. “All but three (were new), maybe,” she said. “Every where else, I’d never played before in a game. I thought it was super fun. It was super memorable. It was nice.” Worth and Chandler played their entire high school careers at Morgan. Finney, a native of Charles ton, Illinois, played only this season with the Lady Dogs. Although Worth said she has a long-term friendship with Chandler, she also said she’s formed a bond with Finney. The friendship shared by all three of them made senior night extra special. “Mary Trent and I’ve been playing ball for a while throughout the years,” Worth said. “We’ve got a friendship, and that is un breakable. Katee, I tell her all the time that even though she just moved here, she is such a light in the dugout. As a person, I love both of them to death. We had our ups and downs throughout the season with the games, but I wouldn’t have wanted to share that with anybody else. And that’s something we’ll be able to share, hopefully, past high school and college.” Finney said she had a hard time adjusting to her new school when she first moved to Morgan. Thanks in large part to Worth and Chandler, who Finney said were “great girls to share this senior year with,” Finney was able to quickly settle in. “It was very tough for me at first,” Finney said. “But once I found my group of people and got in with the team, all the nervousness went away.” Senior night was special, but it was far from Morgan’s final game of the season. The Lady Dogs traveled to Hart on Tuesday and will play at LOA on Thursday. The game with Hart had huge implications on the Region 8-AAA race: If Morgan won, it would be a higher seed and host a home game in the region tourna ment this coming Saturday. If the Lady Dogs lost to Hart, then they will be on the road this weekend. McBay said the key for victory for the Lady Dogs is shoring up their defense and pitching and continuing to hit their marks on offense. “This team’s talented, but at the same time we have a very small margin of error when it comes to errors and pitching,” McBay said. “I’m happy with where our offense is. I think we’re putting a lot of pressure on the defense now, and we’re getting runs across. Our Hubbard Continued from Cl seeing yet another example of why Kaepernick and others who kneel choose to protest. Of course, racism exists on both sides. Prejudice exists on both sides. No one is arguing against that point; therefore, it’s ignorant to bloviate and make those comments as a means of detracting from these peaceful demonstra tions. It’s also ignorant to chalk up the protests to disrespect without listening to those who do it. We all need to do a better job of opening our ears and closing our mouths to understand each other. Instead of bringing up this subject to start an argument, how about you broach it to learn some thing? There’s plenty of blame to go around on both sides of this situation, too. I’m disappointed in the many friends of mine who vehe mently decry those who choose to protest during the anthem. I’m disappointed that those who protest don’t do a better job of communi cating their reasons. If you decide to kneel, understand others may average runs per game have gone up, but we’ve got to stay focused there, too, and make adjustments quick. A lot of times, when it comes to playoff games, the team that makes the adjustment the fastest is the one that wins.” Regardless of this week’s results or the result of the upcoming region tourna ment, Worth, Chandler and Finney have all enjoyed fruitful careers with the Lady Dogs. Worth and Chandler were both part of teams that won a lot of games over the past few years and each had success in their final year. Finney stepped in this season and was a consistent force in the pitcher’s circle. Each one left their mark on the program, and each will carry with them lessons learned while playing for the Lady Dogs. “Throughout the years, there’s been some ups and decide to disagree with you. If you disagree with these protests, you need to under stand those who participate in them have a constitution al right to do so. It’s OK to disagree with one another. We just need to do it respectfully. I stand and cover my heart with my hat every time I hear the national anthem. But I understand it’s my neighbor’s right to sit or kneel during the same anthem if he or she so chooses. Protesting during the national anthem isn’t “un-American” - it’s America at its finest. It shows we have an understanding of the rights guaranteed to us as citizens of this nation. It’s a reminder that we’re a blessed people to have those rights in the first place. Our right to protest the national anthem is just as real as our right to practice whichever religion we want or my right to do my job. Those things are protected by the same constitutional amendment. You don’t have to like it. You don’t have to support it. But our constitution grants us the freedom to protest during the national anthem. You think everyone in the world has that freedom? We are so lucky! And I haven’t even men tioned our wonderful pres- downs, but the one thing that I’ve learned playing ball here is that the flower that blooms in adversity is the most beautiful and rare of all,” Worth said. “I guess what I’m trying to say is I’ve grown in this program. I keep coming back to God, but he’s used softball to shape me. I used to not be confident in myself and everything and he has changed me so spiritually and he’s given me so many revelations. Of course, I’m still being molded into the woman he wants me to be, but everything I’ve gone through here, he’s molded me. To sum that all up, what does it mean to me? I guess it’s taught me a life lesson and taught me to not let anybody tell me that I’m not good enough because God says I’m worthy. I’ve found my strength in him, and this is the best season I’ve had.” ident’s comments regarding this situation. He seemingly desires to make all citizens prove their respect to him and the flag. He said he’d fire NFL players for protesting during the anthem if he had the ability. That should scare every one of us. The president of the United States really expects all of the citizens he’s charged with serving to show him and the flag admiration. The effects of such thinking could be disastrous and there’s a chance that thinking pushes Trump to try and take action that would ulti mately curb our freedoms. We can’t let hatred tear us apart. We all need to come together and gain a better understanding of one another. It’s the only way our country can survive. We stand today at a pivotal point in our coun try’s history. We’re the most divided we’ve been in my nearly 24 years of life. It’s time we pull together and make things better for everyone and stop focusing on just ourselves. Abraham Lincoln once said, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” Our foundation is shaking, but there’s still time to save our house. We just have to be willing to do it. STOP BY AND MEET THE NEW OWNER: i— msm on H BREAKFAST SPECIAL MEAT I 2 SIDES I BREAD FOR $4.99 LUNCH SPECIAL MEAT I 2 SIDES I BREAD I DRINK FOR $7.99 MONDAY - FRIDAY: 5AM - 5PM ^ AHA r—s r, 100 SARA LEE DRIVE I EATONTON I 706.484.2735 CATERINGIAVAILABLE ■■ -amr-nrm AMBURGER STEAK T-BEEF TIPS W - MEAT LOAF TH-DRESSING CLOSED SATURDAY Locally Owned by Denise Nelson STEAK & SEAFOOD Yes we are Open for Lunch! 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