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Sports

Eastside Catholic School Baseball Players Lend a Hand at Special Olympics Swim Meet - and Learn, too

Baseball players pitch in and learn valuable lessons about community service and the importance of having fun.

Eastside Catholic School’s varsity and junior varsity baseball teams volunteered at the Washington State Special Olympics Northwest Regional swim meet on Saturday, helping Special Olympians to compete while learning valuable lessons about the meaning of sports and sportsmanship.

“It was a great experience,” said Jake Gober, an 18-year-old senior.

Over 40 of ’s players and coaches helped out at the event held at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way. They each lent a hand in roles such as time keeping, marshalling and data entry. Most importantly, they lent encouragement to the athletes and cheered for every competitor. 

“I was amazed at really how much I enjoyed the experience,” said Ben Boyle, a 17-year-old senior.

Several of the players said that the Special Olympians had inspired them, both in how hard they worked and in how much fun they had.

“It was pretty inspiring to see what some of the athletes could do,” said Gober.

Seeing how much fun sports and competition could be reminded many of the players why they started playing in the first place.

“It was amazing to see how much they were able to overcome and still compete and still succeed and still ultimately have fun, which is why we all play sports,” said Gober.

“Looking at all of those athletes and how much fun they were having really made me appreciate the sport I play a lot more, and especially the teammates I have around me and how special a community it is,” said Boyle.

Having several of Eastside Catholic’s own Special Olympians compete at the event made it even more meaningful for the baseball players.

“Just seeing them smile and all having fun was fantastic,” said Boyle.

Eastside Catholic’s athletic teams are asked to perform community service projects during the year. These projects allow students to help out in the community and learn valuable life lessons.

“I left feeling good about myself and what I had done,” said Jacob Kelliher, a 17-year-old senior.

“Seeing them work that hard makes me want to work that hard,” said Charlie Ory, an 18-year-old senior.

“To see how hard they worked has inspired me to continue to work hard and to try and be the best person I can be, not just in sports but also throughout my life,” said Boyle.

The experience has inspired several of the players to continue to give of themselves. 

“I want to continue helping out and giving back to the community in any way I can,” said Gober.

The most important lesson the players learned, and perhaps the lesson that will stay with them longest, is that sports can be fun and rewarding no matter who you are or how good you are, that it’s not really about winning or losing but about being happy and having a good time.

“The smiles on all their faces was the greatest feeling,” said Alex Foley, a 15-year-old sophomore.

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