CRAWFORD | Floyds Knobs to hold celebration for softball World Series team Monday | Sports

A group of 12-year-olds and their coaches taught us some grown up lessons

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – The game ended. The tears came. And no matter how a Little League World Series championship finishes, it’s hard to watch the team that comes up short.

Especially when it’s the home team.

Floyds Knobs’ 12-under softball squad did something no Indiana team had done before — reaching the championship game in Greenville, N.C. And they did it the hard way: playing an entire week with their backs to the wall after a Game 1 loss. That kind of pressure is immense. Facing it at age 12? I can’t fathom it.

The community is set to celebrate the team when it arrives back at home Monday evening. The team is expected to arrive back in Louisville around 5, and will head straight to Floyd Central High School, where the doors will open at 5:30 for a celebration that begins around 6.

The team taught us some a great lessons: pressure doesn’t have to shrink you. It can sharpen you. Rick Pitino used to say pressure propels you forward, while stress makes you shrink back.

But that’s not the only takeaway from Floyds Knobs’ fantastic run. From a few hundred miles away, watching on television, here’s what I learned:

Stars rise, but everyone matters.

Pitcher Briley Mercer was brilliant — allowing just one earned run in the entire tournament, while striking out 44 in 31 innings pitched. She struck out eight in the final, a 1-0 loss with an unearned run.

But it took more than Mercer — the defense behind her, hitters who worked deep counts, runners who stretched singles into doubles. The spotlight may land on one player, but it’s never a one-person show. Kennedy Nickels hit .500 in the tournament and drove in three runs. At first base, Aubrey Whittemore played error-free for the entire tournament.

Confidence is contagious.

Coach J.R. Drummond’s calm, direct approach wasn’t a one-time thing — it reflected a week-long belief in his players. They carried themselves like they belonged, and they played like it. Mercer leaned into pressure. Grace Fiore leaned into it. So many stepped up in difficult moments.

Admiral William McRaven, recalling “Hell Week” in Navy SEAL training, tells of candidates waist-deep in freezing mud, on the verge of quitting, when one man started singing. Soon, everyone joined in. Confidence spreads.

“Let them play” is harder than it sounds.

In sports — and life — we often over-coach, over-plan, over-control. Floyds Knobs succeeded because of preparation, yes, but also because coaches stepped back and let them own the moment. Down a run in the final, Drummond told his players: “Nobody is going to feel sorry for you. It’s your game. Go win it.”

Great coaches prepare their players. But the game is won between the lines. The harder thing is to set the stage and let them decide the outcome.

Losing doesn’t erase the story.

The ending wasn’t what they wanted, but this run becomes part of community memory — especially for the players, who’ll never forget it. Sometimes the legacy is bigger than the trophy.

If it’s not, what are we doing?

And when you consider the character these girls and coaches displayed, how can you not celebrate? They should come home to a community as proud of them as they should be of themselves.

Quick sips

• Kasean Pryor held a back-to-school basketball camp in Louisville last weekend. WDRB’s Haley Schoengart caught up with him, where he said he expects to be ready to play at the beginning of the season for Louisville. Pryor played in only six games last season before an ACL injury sent him to the sidelines. Read more here.

• Former Trinity star Rondale Moore was tackled awkwardly on his first return of the preseason and left the field on a cart with what Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell called a significant injury. Read more here.