Liberty Softball

Written by Ari Aquayo - Liberty High Softball Athlete

   From the beginning, we thought it was going to be a skeptical season, truly based on the struggles, effort, and dedication. As time went on, my teammates and I began to believe that it was bigger than us. We prayed before every game and never played for ourselves, but for him. We truly started feeling his presence when the playoffs came around. We won our first playoff game 9-4 and knew that there was more hard work to do. Our game against Wasco started like every other game. The nerves were a little more heightened, but we prayed just like usual. It started a little rocky with a few infield errors. We were down by 1 at the top of the 7th. Xaiya was at third, and me at second. Leila kept fouling balls off, and I had started to pray at second base. She hit a 3-run homerun, and Macie Webster shut it down in the bottom of the 7th. That’s when we realized that God was with us.

   You can feel it in your chest that there was something there. From then on, God moved with us at practices too. Sometimes we needed to remind ourselves in the middle of practice of our goals and to work for him. We went on to play in the Valley game at Fresno State. As we stepped on the field, we all took it in for a second before we all held hands and prayed. We prayed a little more that day, asking him to take the nerves away and to be with us one step at a time. The game ended up going very well, and we won 12-6. When we won, we immediately celebrated, but stopped to take a second and thank God. We prayed again and, with tears, thanked him for his strength, courage, and wisdom. We couldn't have done it without him. The difference in this season compared to previous seasons is the chemistry and love we have for one another, but most importantly, every one of us believed in the power of God. Things happen for a reason, and I truly believe that because of our hard work and doing the work of sharing God, we were rewarded with a ring.

Look for Ari as she steps into her next chapter growing as an athlete playing softball for the Fresno State Bulldogs.