[15thRegionSlamaBamma]

Well I played ball my whole life up until my Jr. year of high school but i can remember all these things. But, through playing soccer in high school and now college I can relate to all this. Having my rituals before games, always lacing my right cleat b-4 the left getting those suckers on as tight as I could. Jumping for a header, sweat running down my face. The smell of hard work on the bus trip home. The memory of tears running down my face after our loss to end my high school carrer still knowing I had at least another 4 years ahead of me. Honestly though the best memories of high school for me was car pooling to girls or guys basketball games. I guess it is the EKY love for basketball that has propelled me to appreciate all of these moment. See my dad always helped coach Pike Central since before they consolidated and he coached at Johns Creek. My first ever basketball game was when I was 3 months old and my father held me in his arms on the side line keeping his shot chart in the other hand. I remember watching you play JR when I was only 10 or so in 97 against Pike Central i think the score was something like 116-90 and i remember dad before the game looking at me and he told me to look at you. He said to me "Son that kid right there will be a legend someday," telling me how great of a kid you was off the court not only on the court. He told me that if anything he wanted me to be like you when i grew up even if i wasn't a good ball player, to be some one that kids looked up to a good role model. And even JR that i may have been from Pike County i modeled my life around you. Noticing that to be good/ great at one sport you must sacrifice everything and that is what I did and look at where I am now playing the game I love soccer. Another thing I can remember like it was yesterday is all the regional and district tournaments that I attended always dressed in my Pike Central girl in the old Orange and Blue. As a kid I always thought I was the real deal b/c dad had me a Pike Central jersey made at TD in Pikeville and it had my last name w/ 00 on the back b/c Tony Delk was my fav. player. I wore that thing all the time with my cow boy boots. Jezzzz this brings back so many great memories.