My Lumberjack Life: Marisa Arriaga
4/8/2020 7:00:00 PM | Softball
SFA Athletics is unveiling a new series called My Lumberjack Life. With the 2019-20 season of competition cut short, this series is an opportunity for our athletes to share how they've been dealing with the recent global events, and how they are spending their time away from campus and the sport they play.
As I was scrolling through Twitter on March 12th I kept seeing announcements of universities and conferences postponing games and seasons. I thought, "this could never happen to us, that's just happening over in the northeast." Within the hour, the SEC and others followed suit. I kept thinking, "this can't happen, not THIS season."
Fast forward a few hours…we receive a text in the SFA Softball group chat, "No team practice, team meeting at 4pm." There was maybe four hours to sit and think until the meeting. Each time I looked at social media my hope faded. All I kept seeing on Twitter was "SEC cancelled entire season, JUCO cancelled, Ivy League cancelled." I thought, "Oh no, this can't be…we haven't even played our best ball yet."
Then we received another text telling us that our season had been postponed for two weeks and our coaches and athletic department will tell us more in the meeting. "Just for two weeks. Ok, this is sad, but I can do it." I was still hopeful.
I arrive at the locker room and see everyone standing outside. Nobody really wanted to go inside. As one person went in the rest followed and in no time we were cutting up like we always do. One of my teammates saw our head coach walk by red-eyed and crying and we all went silent. We knew. We knew that if coach was crying it was serious. I did not want to believe it and I really still can't.
A few moments later all of the coaches walk in along with our assistant athletic director. Our head coach was crying as she stood up and gathered herself to say something. I felt it right then and I knew. "The chances of us being able to play are very slim and I don't see the conference reversing this call." I was crying with my head in my shirt. Our season was cancelled. There were only red eyes in the locker room.
My first thoughts were about our seniors. I looked first at the girls I spend most of my time with, my outfielders… both seniors in the classroom. One with a job lined up and one planning on attending grad school. I looked at our senior pitcher who was killing it this season, and all I saw was pain and sadness.
I know it's common to hear about teams claiming to have a special season, but the sweep in our first conference matchup and the win against a SEC school (in the fall) said it for us. We didn't have a lot of crazy unbelievable talent this year, but man, we worked together. We hadn't even come close to playing our best ball.
My freshman year I was at another school and really missed out on a softball family. When I got to SFA it was everything I dreamed of and more. I was so excited to earn my spot and after a week of pre-season training I broke a bone in my foot. After some rest and rehab I was back, but still trying to get to my best and it was near the end of season. I made the starting line-up a handful of times and boom, just like that, the season was over. I only had two years left.
My motto coming into this year was to have fun because I realized over the summer that I only have two seasons left to play. I wouldn't be able to sit in the locker room with twenty other girls and joke around. I wouldn't be able to wake up from a nap on the bus to girls signing Beyoncé at the top of their lungs. My time was limited so I told myself, "no matter if I play or not, I will be the best I can be for the incoming freshmen and my underclassmen and I will be steady."
I ended up having my best showing this season and it was just the beginning. One of our freshmen was almost halfway to breaking the school record for the most home runs in a single season and it was just the beginning of conference play. She was going to break it by far. Now, I only have one more year to play the sport I love, at this level.
Of course, I understand the severity of this epidemic. I am a cellular and molecular biology major and we talk about it constantly in my microbiology and molecular biology course. We do need to be careful and by suspending every sport, we cut down on the chances of spreading the virus tremendously. But even then, I still can't believe this is what it has come to.
Now, my days consist of studying for my classes and DAT exam, getting a little workout in, talking with my teammates and watching all of the movies on Disney+. I never realized how much the game of softball has impacted me off the field. It's not just a game it's a lifestyle. It has been a huge adjustment not being able to go destress in the batting cages. I have found that cleaning and painting are my new stress outlets.
My heart goes out to the collegiate athletes that were suited up about to play for a national championship. For the athletes that trained all year for a great season and for the coaches who worked tirelessly preparing their team to get a championship ring.
For those who played their last game not knowing it, keep your head high, and cherish the memories.
For those who still have a year or so ahead, play every game like it's your last because no day is promised. Remember that it is a game, so work hard and have fun.
- M
As I was scrolling through Twitter on March 12th I kept seeing announcements of universities and conferences postponing games and seasons. I thought, "this could never happen to us, that's just happening over in the northeast." Within the hour, the SEC and others followed suit. I kept thinking, "this can't happen, not THIS season."
Fast forward a few hours…we receive a text in the SFA Softball group chat, "No team practice, team meeting at 4pm." There was maybe four hours to sit and think until the meeting. Each time I looked at social media my hope faded. All I kept seeing on Twitter was "SEC cancelled entire season, JUCO cancelled, Ivy League cancelled." I thought, "Oh no, this can't be…we haven't even played our best ball yet."
Then we received another text telling us that our season had been postponed for two weeks and our coaches and athletic department will tell us more in the meeting. "Just for two weeks. Ok, this is sad, but I can do it." I was still hopeful.
I arrive at the locker room and see everyone standing outside. Nobody really wanted to go inside. As one person went in the rest followed and in no time we were cutting up like we always do. One of my teammates saw our head coach walk by red-eyed and crying and we all went silent. We knew. We knew that if coach was crying it was serious. I did not want to believe it and I really still can't.
A few moments later all of the coaches walk in along with our assistant athletic director. Our head coach was crying as she stood up and gathered herself to say something. I felt it right then and I knew. "The chances of us being able to play are very slim and I don't see the conference reversing this call." I was crying with my head in my shirt. Our season was cancelled. There were only red eyes in the locker room.
My first thoughts were about our seniors. I looked first at the girls I spend most of my time with, my outfielders… both seniors in the classroom. One with a job lined up and one planning on attending grad school. I looked at our senior pitcher who was killing it this season, and all I saw was pain and sadness.
I know it's common to hear about teams claiming to have a special season, but the sweep in our first conference matchup and the win against a SEC school (in the fall) said it for us. We didn't have a lot of crazy unbelievable talent this year, but man, we worked together. We hadn't even come close to playing our best ball.
My freshman year I was at another school and really missed out on a softball family. When I got to SFA it was everything I dreamed of and more. I was so excited to earn my spot and after a week of pre-season training I broke a bone in my foot. After some rest and rehab I was back, but still trying to get to my best and it was near the end of season. I made the starting line-up a handful of times and boom, just like that, the season was over. I only had two years left.
My motto coming into this year was to have fun because I realized over the summer that I only have two seasons left to play. I wouldn't be able to sit in the locker room with twenty other girls and joke around. I wouldn't be able to wake up from a nap on the bus to girls signing Beyoncé at the top of their lungs. My time was limited so I told myself, "no matter if I play or not, I will be the best I can be for the incoming freshmen and my underclassmen and I will be steady."
I ended up having my best showing this season and it was just the beginning. One of our freshmen was almost halfway to breaking the school record for the most home runs in a single season and it was just the beginning of conference play. She was going to break it by far. Now, I only have one more year to play the sport I love, at this level.
Of course, I understand the severity of this epidemic. I am a cellular and molecular biology major and we talk about it constantly in my microbiology and molecular biology course. We do need to be careful and by suspending every sport, we cut down on the chances of spreading the virus tremendously. But even then, I still can't believe this is what it has come to.
Now, my days consist of studying for my classes and DAT exam, getting a little workout in, talking with my teammates and watching all of the movies on Disney+. I never realized how much the game of softball has impacted me off the field. It's not just a game it's a lifestyle. It has been a huge adjustment not being able to go destress in the batting cages. I have found that cleaning and painting are my new stress outlets.
My heart goes out to the collegiate athletes that were suited up about to play for a national championship. For the athletes that trained all year for a great season and for the coaches who worked tirelessly preparing their team to get a championship ring.
For those who played their last game not knowing it, keep your head high, and cherish the memories.
For those who still have a year or so ahead, play every game like it's your last because no day is promised. Remember that it is a game, so work hard and have fun.
- M
2.1.24 | Axe 'Em Insider Ep. 24 x Softball
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Wednesday, February 22
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Thursday, May 12
