Chris Masse on high school sports: I can relate to what high school athletes experience

One of the things I like most about covering high school sports is that I can actually relate to the athletes. College and Professional sports, forget about it.

But so much of what high school athletes experience I did as well. I played high school sports--not very well--but I played five at various times. The most fun I had was playing on the 1994 Garnet Valley baseball team which captured the District 1 Class AA championship and reached the state quarterfinals. We remain the only baseball team to ever win districts there, a fact anyone who knows me or follows me on social media understands I bring up about 100 times or so a year.

But having lived through that experience my message to the South Williamsport softball team is this--It gets better.

Bald Eagle Area ended South's fantastic season Tuesday, scoring four runs in the sixth inning and winning a hard-fought Class AA Eastern Region final, 4-0. South finished 21-3 and one game shy of reaching its ultimate destination, the state final at Penn State.

But what a ride it was, reaching the state's Final 4. And as the years by, I can assure the players they will remember much more fondly everything which led to Tuesday's game more than the game itself.

Losing sucks. Nobody likes it. The problem in sports is that unless one wins the last game, the season is going to end in heartbreak. A wise man one told me, "If you can't handle disappointment, don't play sports."

So often, seasons do end in disappointment when looking at it from a win/loss perspective. Only the champion gets to walk off into the sunset. I know that feeling well from when Southern Columbia defeated it us that hot day in Allentown 29 years ago.

And I'm not going to lie and say that the loss doesn't still bother me. You bet it does. If one is a competitor, it will always be annoying and one will always wonder if such and such had happened, maybe the game could have turned out different.

But experience also tells me that when I reflect on that season, I always smile and feel good. We didn't win the state championship but we sure achieved a lot and went a long way. We did something that not a lot of teams do. And we had the time of our lives achieving it.

Here's hoping South feels the same way. It will take time, no doubt. Personally, I didn't want to know how Southern did in the next round that year because I was still bummed about losing. When one wants something bad and works hard toward earning it and truly cares about it, the finality of the situation hits hard.

That is why so many South players shed tears Tuesday. That is why I and several of my teammates cried following our defeat. Still, the tears dry up and are replaced by happy memories.

Don't just take my word for it, though. Remember earlier when I said I cannot relate to what athletes advancing to the next levels experience? Well, South coach Tom O'Malley sure can. He played nine years in the Majors before becoming a Japanese legend and winning regular season, all-star and World Series MVPs in the same season.

What he says kind of drives the point home.

"It's one of the best memories of your life, playing sports in high school and playing with your friends," O'Malley said. "Little League and high school were the best times in my life. Hopefully, they feel the same way."

At this level players are not just teammates, but friends. They grow up together and often have played together long before they reach high school. That connection never really goes away either. Teammates will go their different ways following high school and do different things. But they always will have these times, these accomplishments and these memories.

The ironic thing is that even if these teammates rarely see each other after high school graduation, they will feel more connected in a way through what they achieved together. I know I and all my teammates still do. When I return to my former home, I sometimes drive by the field. If I look and listen close enough, I can still see and hear my teammates and I playing the game we love and sharing a special time in our lives.

Those good times go far beyond what happened on the field, too. It's the practices, the bus rides, the laughs, the celebrations and everything wonderful that comes with a long, successful journey.

When one goes as far as South did, those teammates become bonded for life. That's the beauty of sports, especially at this young age.

Competitors never get over season-ending losses. That's the nature of the beast which rages inside. But as the years go by all the positives far outweigh that last defeat.

I mean, just look at what South did. It played against grueling schedule and still went 21-3. It repeated as district champions, and reached the Final for first time since 2004. The Mounties beat District 6 Class AAAA champion Bellefonte, HAC-III champion Loyalsock and 6A Williamsport at the same tournament when they captured the Williamsport Tournament championship.

All the players; all the coaches have their fingerprints on this tremendous success. Most important, South played its collective heart out. The Mounties relentlessly worked all season and each player can look in the mirror and know she did everything possible to make this season such a great one.

It's never fun when the season ends just short of winning the state title. But trust me on this one, South:

In time, you will understand that this season was one giant, impressive win.

–Masse may be reached at cmasse@sungazette.com. Follow him on Twitter at @docmasse.