The Big Game

I realized that this was bound to happen sooner or later. I sit, silently, with anticipation, waiting for warm-ups to finish. Watching, remembering how I used to be the one, the one everyone cheered for, the one everyone came to see, the one everyone was watching. I was the one who led the team on to the court and the one who shook the hands of the referees, and the hand of other teams’ captain. Now I am the observer, and I watch as warm-ups finish and the teams shake hands.
She tosses the ball up, she serves it, and now it is over the net. It was a hard, fast serve, the kind that no one wants to return for the sake of their forearms. The crowd, with myself included, cheers for our team. We had the first point, of the first game, of the season. She serves again. This time, the opposing team is ready with their arms out forward and there legs bent so low, you’d think they were sitting. Once the ball is over the net, the opponent bumps the ball back towards the net to one of her teammates, allowing her to set the ball to their middle hitter. The middle hitter is approaching, jumps up and spikes the ball down. Now her team celebrates, as well as the other side of the bleachers. Our side now just shouts confidence boosters, as to not let our team get down on their selves. After all, we are not losing, we are only tied.
Opponents now have the ball and it is theirs to serve. We watch as she tosses the volleyball into the air, approaches, and hits the ball. She loses her balance mid hit but the ball still makes it over the net. Everyone on the other side of the net is ready and gets a beautiful “bump, set, spike” combo. The volley match begins.
This continues for quite a while, point by point until the set is won. My side of the bleachers stands up and cheers and claps in a celebratory state. Galena bulldogs are the victor. Across the gym, the Riverton Ram fans all stay seated, all the while taunting because there is still some hope that they could go home with the win. We all watch our teams gather at their bench, picking up their towels and water bottles to switch sides of the court.
Riverton gets the ball first this time. Everyone watches as she serves it to our side, which is overly confident now. As it comes over the net, everyone looks at each other, expecting on another to get the ball, but no one does. It falls to the floor and the other team chants, “ACE! ACE! ACE!” Unfortunately that was not a lesson that our team had learned, for it happens several times and we lose the next set.
Now Riverton’s crowd it standing, cheering, taunting and clapping as their team circles in the middle for a team boosting talk about the last a final set to win the match and go home with a win. Galena sits and waits, while the coin is tossed in the air. Our girls choose to switch sides, so once again, they huddle at the bench, gathering their belongings and moving back to the side from which they started. However, Riverton won the serve, and will begin the set with the ball on their side.
Now the set begins, with the anticipation of the crowd and players rising. The score staying so close the entire time. Each time a team scores, their fans go crazy in the