Inspiration!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jocw-oD2pgo]
I was recently at a doctor’s office when I read the amazing story of Sara Tucholsky.
It happened back in May of 2008. Sara Tucholsky was a Senior at Western Oregon University and an NCAA softball player on the team. In a playoff game with Central Washington University, she stepped up for her final at bat of the game. Then she hit a dramatic home run to give her team a late lead. It was the first home run of her career for the scrappy 5’2 outfielder.
As she was circling the bases, she blew out her knee and collapsed, her season instantly over. The umpires ruled that her teammates were forbidden to carry her around to touch all the bases, which is what is required of a home run, and they’d allow a pinch runner for Sara and rule the hit a two-run single.
Then something amazing happened. Two members of the other team volunteered to carry her. One of them was Mallory Holtman, the career home run leader in their conference. The sight of Sara being carried around by the other team, which was eliminated by her home run, was witnessed by one hundred lucky spectators.
It was a supreme act of sportsmanship, which is like an oasis in today’s world of bad news, and has been enshrined by ESPN as one of the most unforgettable home runs ever.