Dylan Steinfeld

Ms. Reed

Language Arts 9

10 February 2020

Blood, Sweat, and Tears

Swish...swoosh, swash! Tying my laces felt like the final stretch of the Kentucky Derby.

The other team was glaring in our eyes deeply. The date was May 16, 2014 and it was

championship day. We were in the semi finals and the game was starting. Tip-off. The game was

underway. By the end of the first quarter, the score was 13-9, we were down. Our team gathered

up in the tense, vibrating huddle. I put my arms around my teammates sweaty, wet backs and we

talked gameplan. It was time to take the floor again.

This quarter, I saw a change in attitude. We were jumping after lose balls, getting tough

rebounds, hitting clutch shots. The game was looking in our favor. By the end of the fourth

quarter, we had dominated and won by fourteen. I was so excited, we had finally made the

championship for the first time. Our opponent was very good and we were going to need to put

up something special in order to come away with the victory.

It was a little bit of a timespan from the semi-finals to the championship. I could smell

the scent of the trophies in the back room and watched them reflect off the door as if it was like

looking at the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. I was so anxious to get back on the floor and

be crowned as the champions.

 The team and I had eaten a meal to give our bodies some fuel before the big game. It was

going to be a dog fight the whole way. This team was undefeated and we had lost to them

previously in the regular season. Nobody thought we were going to make it this far...nobody.

My whole life I've wanted to win a championship and it had never happened. I wasn't

going to let it go. I had flashbacks of the first day of tryouts and being drafted 3rd overall. I knew

this meant that I was going to be the leader and had to show perseverance throughout every game

and how tough I could play. The other team had the 1st overall draft pick, Cooper Jofesburg. Not

going to lie, he was good. But nothing my teammates and I couldn't take. As the championship

quickly neared, my nerves were back and my whole body was tingling, it felt like little butterflies

were flying inside of me.

This was our season, this was it. Take it all, or take nothing. Definitely the most

important basketball game of my life at the time.

The crowds started to shove in and soon, the gym was filled up. This didn't help the fact

that my heart felt like a category 5 hurricane wiping out my whole body. I remembered my dad

saying to breath quickly three times really fast and that could help.

My mom looked at me and nodded. She believed in me, I knew she did. And that's what

kept me playing.

Starters were introduced and I took the floor. I could feel the vibration and energy

throughout the gym and I knew at that moment, this game was going to come down to the wire.

Shmack! We won the tip and the ball bounced to me. ​Bounce, bounce! ​I took 4 dribbles

and drove hard to my left and finished a reverse layup. 2-0. That quarter was pretty quiet and
everyone in the gym could tell that this was the best game of the year. The score was 8-8 going

into the second.

The halftime buzzer sounded and we rushed up to the locker room. Score - eighteen to

fourteen, they were winning.

Their defense was very good and we were having trouble finding open holes in their

defense to drive.

The halftime speech was one to remember and I could sense how bad my coach wanted

this, how bad we all wanted it.

As the second half started, we went on a big run scoring seven points in a row. This was

huge for our team. It gave us solid momentum and were up by three. They called timeout and we

all rushed to bench excited. I rapidly calmed everyone down and said, “The game isn't over.”

Their moods quickly changed from ecstatic to determined. The quarter ended and we were up by

a point. I could tell the energy in their huddle was pounding with excitement and that is where

we needed to be. Cooper was starting to heat up so good thing the quarter ended to stop his

momentum.

As the last minute approached, the score was tied, 36-36. I was at the free throw line

shooting 2. ​Dribble​, ​dribble, spin, spin, ​breath​ ​in. Breath out​...s​ woosh. ​Dribble, dribble, spin,

spin,​ breath in. Breath out...swoosh. We were now up by 2 with a minute remaining. Cooper

penetrated from coast to coast and got a quick layup. My heart was pounding and I knew in order

to win, we had to all be calm. My coach called a timeout, and in the huddle, I could feel all the

sweat, tears, and blood our team had felt this season and I switched my gear. We were winning.
 My teammate Justin checked the ball in and I dribbled up the court. I could hear the

crowds noises getting louder in my beating ear drums. I silenced everything and looked up at the

clock, 15, 14, 13, 12, 11. I crossed over, took 2 dribbles, spin move, and layed a quick floater up.

“And one!” I scream as I leapt up in the air. There was total contact but no way they call it, no

way, I was thinking to myself. The whistle blew and I was shocked. I jumped into the air as if I

had just won the Super Bowl. Lining up my feet on the free throw felt so long, yet so short.

Dribble, dribble, spin, spin​, breath in. Breath out. The ball released from my hands and I noticed

the backspin on it was too much and it looked off. It bounced the rim three times before

punching in. It was a three point game with 3 seconds remaining. I couldn't help but think this

game was ours.

They checked the ball in, ran down the court and threw up a long chucker. ​Bounce​, ​thud!

​ AME OVER!” The announcer exclaims. I rushed over to my teammates and we jumped up in
“G

perfect sync. A demonstration of what this season had been like. Perfect teamwork. It was over.

The title was ours....Ours, finally.