BY ERICA GUSTAFSON, OPINION EDITOR
What are the two most important things that contribute to a person being a good athlete and player? Though there could be a number of attributes that influence a player’s ability, hard work and talent are the first two that really come to mind.
I have been an athlete all of my life. From my freshman to senior year in high school, I was a three-sport athlete. It was a year-round commitment that I was completely dedicated to doing. Basketball, volleyball and softball were the largest part of my high school career.
After graduating, I continued to attend St. Bonaventure and joined the university’s club softball team as a pitcher.
The one thing that has followed me all of these years is that I know I am not the best player out there. I am not the most talented or the most athletic. I have loved the game of softball since I first picked up a ball and bat, but I am always learning more about the game.
In all of this, I have learned something about players in the field of athletics; you don’t always have to be the most talented in order to be considered a good player. A good athlete or player may have some athletic ability that is accompanied by hard work and dedication.
In a 2020 Stack article, Dylan Spadaccini talks about different hidden qualities that college coaches look for in athletes. One of the most prominent and first to appear on his list is hard work and dedication.
In speaking about coaches, Spadaccini writes, “they also want to see how well you prepare, how hard you train, and how you handle yourself off the field.”
This made me think back to the hundreds of hours I would put in on and off the field preparing myself to leave everything I had on that field or court. It didn’t matter that I was not the best. I put in 100% of my effort every time I was able.
I found a 2011 article from Chris Stankovich that also wrote about the difference between athletic talent and hard work on The Sports Doc Chalk Talk with Dr. Chris Stankovich.
Stankovich stated, “most teams have at least one athletically gifted player, and inevitably have at least one player with average skills but tons of ‘heart.” He continued to write, “The reality is that most successful people – be it athletes or students – achieve their success more from hard work than they do their natural talent.”
I honestly can say that I know I will never be the most talented on the softball field. Though I will never stop trying to improve myself, I accept that. It is the reality that we live in today. This will be my last year and my last season playing on a school or university’s team. Though I am extremely sad about it, I know that I left my mark as a good player who contributed all I could to the amazing sport.
