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Hi my name’s Gene
Bowles. I graduated from Great Mills High School in 2004. I play for
the College of Southern Maryland baseball team. I am an infielder and
in the bullpen occasional. During this 2006 season I will be your guide
with the Hawks baseball team. I will give you the inside scope on
what’s going on in the world of “Hawks Baseball”. |
GENE BOWLES DIARY #4 - TRIP TO FLORIDA
April 19, 2006
Well
I’m back! Not as cheery as in the beginning of the year when I was full of hope
for a championship year. The baseball season hasn’t turned out the way we
planned, but on the plus side we have experienced playing teams from other
states such as Delaware, Iowa, New York, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia
that helped us see what the rest of the nation is bringing to this great game of
baseball that we all love.
The Florida trip was one that I will remember for the longest time. When I was
dropped off at the airport the atmosphere was already keyed to have a great time
and the anticipation of being in Florida. Several of the ball players didn’t
know what to expect in the flight, as they had never flown on an airplane in
their entire lives, but the plane ride was a smooth one. Personally the flight
was my third, but I felt like a veteran flying compared to the actions involved
in take off. I never seen anyone so anxious, yet confused about how the ride
would go. Once the plane was settled in the air, the team was comforted by the
earphones they received that played XM satellite radio.
After the plane landed I walked towards the front of the plane to get off and I
was met by an older woman. This older woman asked me where I was from and if I
liked the Orioles. I replied, “I’m from St. Mary’s County, Maryland and I love
the Orioles.” Than she asked if I knew who Mike Flanagan was. I told her that he
used to pitch for the Orioles. Well, come to find out, that was her husband and
I got to meet him in the airport lobby while waiting to get our baggage.
Flanagan was down in Ft. Lauderdale with the Baltimore Orioles and asked me how
our college team was and wished us luck.
The ball games down in Florida didn’t start off so hot with a 10-0 loss to Erie.
The best thing we could do was to come back the next day and put that loss
behind us. Sure enough we did and Erie got the shock of their life with a 15-4
stomping by us. The next game we beat Garrett from our own MDJUCO conference,
4-0. Unfortunately we lost the next two games. The first game was to Jefferson
by a score of 11-3 and then we lost to a Division III school from Iowa by the
score of 4-3.
Even though this year hasn’t been filled with a lot of wins, it has helped me to
understand that throughout anything in life you need to work through the hard
times. I have learned that no matter where you go in life, rough times will
surround you and it’s up to you to move on. That’s just like baseball. The one
plus side is that the friendships I’ve made through this college season will
last a life time, and that’s more than a championship can do. I just hope that
the guys on the team that are first year players come back and help bring back
the winning style of baseball we all know how to play.
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