A lot that goes on in today’s sports world befuddles me, including the gradual softening of athletic competition among younger age groups.

Unless I missed something, the current crop of coaches and parents – who grew up playing pickup games where winners stayed on and those on losing teams waited for their next chance to play – weren’t screwed up that badly by their ups and downs on the fields of play.

But a generation later things have change, and not necessarily for the better. Today if it isn’t organized, it isn’t played, and it seems more about games than working on the fundamentals that make the player – and ultimately make the team.

What may be worse is the tendency toward weaning youngsters off some of the more competitive aspects of their chosen sports for fear of any negativity that could result.

The job world that awaits kids when they graduate from high school or college isn’t nearly as forgiving, so the preparatory virtues of growing up shouldn’t be confined just to personal fulfillment.

That’s where sports can play a vital role, providing opportunities to develop individual talents and team-building skills within pressure situations, offering a glimpse into how those who participate might respond to more real-life challenges once they’ve received their diplomas.

The early stages of this year’s high school baseball playoffs have produced plenty of pressure-packed situations.

One witnessed first-hand was an Eastern Maine Class B preliminary-round game between Old Town and Camden Hills of Rockport.

Old Town was making its Class B postseason debut after faring well in Class A level in recent years. Camden Hills struggled early this spring but reacted to those travails in a way that earned it the significant reward of a second chance at a successful season.

Camden Hills jumped out to a stunning 6-0 lead over the higher-ranked Coyotes, only to have Old Town respond with eight unanswered runs.

That’s often enough to dash an underdog’s upset hopes, but a two-run homer by the Windjammers in the top of the seventh sent the game into extra innings, where finally Old Town prevailed by scratching across the winning run in the bottom of the eighth.

The Coyotes justifiably celebrated their ability to cope with adversity, buoyed by the knowledge they would play another game.

Camden Hills didn’t earn the same luxury, yet beyond the final score the Windjammers could understand that they, too, had made the most of their competitive experience.

“I tell my kids that you have to maintain composure whether you’re ahead or behind and stay focused on the play in front of you,” said Camden Hills coach Tom Stammen. “I felt we did that most of the game and the kids played their hearts out, so you can’t ask for anything more than that.

“You always hope for better things to happen, especially in a game like that. It was a tough loss, but they’ll survive and you know what, it’s not a bad thing for kids to go through those kinds of games. I think they’re a real learning experience for the next time they’re faced with adversity.”

Those sentiments alone provide a learning experience far beyond that held within the pages of a textbook, and a refreshing understanding by at least one educator that while winning is the preferred result of any game, there’s value in both the highs and lows of competition, and no need to avoid either high or low.

eclark@bangordailynews.net

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