Sydney Stavro transferred to Georgia State last fall after four years at Georgia Tech and previously at Buford High. Going into her final season of softball, Stavro led the team in doubles and was third in batting average in 23 games before the season ended due to the coronavirus. This first-person account first appeared on the Georgia State website on March 25 and is used with the school’s permission.
While I anxiously waited for the text from Coach Roger (Kincaid), a war waged in my head. Considering the circumstances, I knew there was going to be some trouble getting to South Alabama, but I never in a million years thought I would be hit with THAT curveball, and boy oh boy did that curveball hit me straight in the heart. During the first thirty minutes, past departure time, I figured we would probably just leave a few hours later or maybe even the next day. However, once the first hour went by with no word, my hope slowly started to melt away.
For the next hour and a half, my mind immediately went to the best-case scenario and the worst-case scenario, as one naturally does in a crisis. But I firmly believed that they would figure something out and we would be able to get our games in the upcoming weekend. NOBODY could tell me different. I knew the Florida and Florida State game had been cancelled but I thought that had nothing to do with us and we would soon be on our way. I had every platform of social media up on my iPad, laptop and phone and was constantly refreshing the NCAA, NCAA Softball and the Sun Belt Twitter pages, looking for an update, ANYTHING.
After two hours, we finally got the text to meet Coach Roger at the stadium. I figured, okay we are just leaving tomorrow, or worst-case scenario we will not play this weekend and carry on after a week.
When Coach Roger pulled us into the meeting room at the stadium, you could feel how heavy the air was, you could hear a pin drop, and silence just radiated as we awaited the rest of the team for his announcement. Coach Roger told us the season was “suspended indefinitely” which meant it wasn’t canceled and could be reevaluated at any moment. So, I thought that was good news. Some people in the room were very emotional but my demeanor never faltered. This was just some flu type virus; how could people be freaking out this bad?!? I figured this would all blow over in the next week and we would be back on track and ready to compete.
I maintained my composure and was POSITIVE we would get through this, take a nice little break and then come back and compete like nothing ever happened.
Throughout the weekend, I would have fought someone if they told me I would never play another game again. There was no way this extent of events could transpire into something like we have never seen before and cause such mass panic. However, on Monday we got the news that our season was in fact canceled. When I received the news, I was at dinner, eating pork chops and mac ‘n cheese at my boyfriend’s cousins house. As soon as I opened it, I stared at it in disbelief and my face dropped immediately. My boyfriend grabbed the phone from me to see why I became so distant and I had to run upstairs, as the emotion was overwhelming, and the reality of the situation had finally hit.
I played my last game EVER on Wednesday night, March 11th, 2020 in Auburn, Ala., against the Tigers. I rolled over a ball and my last ever college at bat was a groundout to the second basemen. I unknowingly laced up my cleats for the last time, put on that Panthers jersey for the last time, caught my last fly ball in the top of the 7th inning, wore my rally cap for the last time next to Baylee Sexton in the bottom of the 7th on that field and I never thought it would be my last game. I remember looking at Baylee after the game, and both of us being like ‘Wow, we lost but we just had so much fun.’ Our energy was the highest it had ever been. We got to bat right next to each other in the lineup (we call it the lefty special and do a turkey call when we both get on base) and made sure to do a Tik Tok dance in between every inning.
I cried for the rest of the night. The little 8-year-old girl who had just swung a bat for the first time was finally swinging for the last.
The past week I haven’t really stopped thinking about softball. I thought about all the time my dad spent teaching me how to catch a dang backhand when I was 9, because my 4-foot-5 self swore I was destined to be a first basemen. I remember the thousands of lessons my parents took me to when I made the switch from hitting right-handed to left-handed and becoming a slapper.
I remember my mom switching up my hair style before games because I was so superstitious and if I didn’t go 4-for-4 then I needed to try something new. They always did everything they could to support me no matter how ridiculous my request was. I remember my sister Sterling faked being sick so she didn’t have to come to my long softball tournaments but then would come anyways and give me the biggest hugs after each game no matter how I performed.
I remember my little brother Steele, break dancing his heart out behind my dugout and being my No. 1 fan at every single game. And I remember my grandparents coming to my game and saying that I played the best game ever and they love watching me play so much even though I went 0-for-3.
Softball has brought me so many good memories and has been such a huge part of my life that I don’t want to get my mind off it. The memories I have made with my teammates, my coaches and my family are priceless and have provided me with an eternity of happiness.
Now that it has been a week, I wouldn’t say my mindset has shifted, I have just focused on the things that bring me happiness. I am pouring into my teammates and family and am really relying on them to get through this crazy time.
I’m not sure what the plan is yet, but I’m just taking each day as it comes and looking forward to the future. The only way to go is up and I plan to live each day to the fullest because if this experience has taught me anything it’s to do just that. You never know when a day could be your last, so you have to make the most out of it.
I cannot thank the coaching staff at Georgia State enough for giving me another opportunity to play the game I adore so much. I have never met a group of coaches more loving and caring and I wouldn’t trade my experiences with them for anything in this world. I love this family and I am so blessed for the short time I got with them because it is enough to last me an eternity.
About the Author
