I grew up loving the game, but it wasn't always like that. After sweating, crying, laughing, and sometimes bleeding for softball, I realize that my passion for this sport is not something I was born with, nor is it something that I was able to acquire on my own. Additionally, I cannot say that the sport ever truly came naturally to me. Instead, my passion through the game is something that I learned, and I can attribute much of the joy I found in playing to the individuals that guided me along the way.

While I learned to play with heart, practiced to be better, and hurt the day that I had to give it up, there are a few people that shaped the time in-between. Through many games, these people stood by my side, pushed me, yelled at me, and loved me, but above all of that, they taught me that the game of softball was about much more than batting, pitching, and scoring runs. Rather, these people taught me that if I allowed the game to shape me, then I would absolutely never be the same. To all of my coaches, wherever you are, thank you for teaching me to love the game, but more importantly, thank you for helping me understand that the game itself can teach you more about life than winning ever will. If you had great coaches like me, you can probably thank them for some, if not all, of these things:

1. Coach believes in you, even if no one else believes in you.

If there is one thing that I learned through my years of playing sports, it's that your coaches are not only your coaches, but that they are also mentors to you through all parts of life. There are highs and lows to every athletic career, but with a coach that believes in you, you can overcome many things.

2. There really is no "I" in "TEAM."

This is one of the most important things Coach taught me. I have heard this phrase for years, but I actually got to learn what this phrase means through my athletic career. I learned that teams win together, but they also lose together, and that teamwork means relying on one another, even if that means that you sometimes have to carry the weight of your teammates. Coach taught me that even though we should all pull our own, when we step on the field, we have to work together, always.

3. The last play is over and you have to treat it that way.

You had a bad play. So what? Coach taught me that dwelling on a bad play will only get you more bad plays. Errors will happen, but like Coach says, you have to put the bad play behind you or else it will cost you the rest of the game. I've carried this one with me through life. No matter what you go through, you can't spend all of your days dwelling on the past. There are some things we have to learn to let go, just like bad plays, and once we do that, we can move forward with the game.

4. If you work hard you will never lose.

Coach taught me that hard work will always come out on top and while you might physically lose the game, if you work hard, you will win in life. Throughout my athletic career, I lost a lot of games, but I also won some, too. But, more importantly, I learned that you cannot put a score on hard work. I also learned that winning a game isn't everything, but learning and growing is.

5. You are important to the team.

I remember missing a travel tournament one weekend after just having had back surgery, and as a player, I not only felt like I was missing out, but I also felt like I was letting my team down. After my team won the tournament, my coach brought home the winning trophy to me. This reminded me that although I was going through a challenging time, I was still of value to the team. That weekend, Coach taught me that throughout our athletic careers, we will go through some ups and downs, but that it's important to remember that no matter what, you are still an important part of the team.

6. Bad sportsmanship will only, and I mean only, get you laps.

As a member of a team, I learned that not every team you play has good sportsmanship, but that your team should always strive to have some of the best. Coach taught me that if our sportsmanship was bad, then everybody would be running laps before going home. He taught me that there's no room for bad sportsmanship on the field, and that if you wanted to fuel negativity, then you needed to hang your jersey up right away.

7. Attitude is everything and if yours is bad, you can cost the team a lot.

There was never any time for a bad attitude at practice or during the game and Coach taught me that if you had a bad attitude, you needed to take some alone time to get rid of it before stepping on the field. In life, attitude is everything, too. Thanks to Coach, I understand that my attitude will always follow me around, and if I have a poor one, it will cost me playing time, and might even cost the team the game.

8. Coaches make mistakes, too.

Good coaches make mistakes, but don't always take the blame. Great coaches make mistakes and realize that they are wrong. Coach taught me that not only in the game, but in life, we will make wrong decisions, and that those wrong decisions might sometimes cost us. However, he also taught me that owning up to our mistakes, but vowing to do better next time, is an important part of life.

9. Your biggest asset is not only about what you bring to the table, but what you can lend to someone else.

You might be the best player on the team, or you might not. What matters the most is that you share your abilities and your heart for the game with the other members of your team in the best way that you can. Coach taught me that he doesn't care as much about what abilities each person can bring to the table, but that he cares more about how everyone's abilities and love for the game can come together as one.

10. What coach says, goes.

Not what your mom, dad, cousin, sister, brother, or grandma says, but what Coach says. When you're on the field, it's Coach's direction that matters. Coach taught me that as a leader of the team, the best interest of the team was always at heart; therefore, he made the decisions, and as a player, I learned to respect that.

11. You have to practice like you play.

Coach taught me that practice is a time for just that -- practice. If you want to win, then you have to practice like you want to win. Coach taught me that there will always be better teams, but that the better team will not always win. Instead, Coach taught me that the team that practices like they want to play, and the team that shows up ready to work hard each and every day, is the better team. I learned that if I wanted to become a better athlete, then I had to practice even when I left practice, and that I had to work hard to become better for myself and for my team.

12. Coach is your number one fan and your worst critic when you're on the field, but also in life.

I always knew that I could count on my family to be at my games cheering me on, but I also knew that I could always count on Coach to have my back. Whether he was arguing a call, helping me up off the ground if I got hurt, telling me what to fix for the next play, or just simply giving me a pep talk, Coach always had my best interest in mind. I had some pretty incredible people believing in me along the way, and without all of you, coaches, I would have never learned to love the game.

I am not the person I am today because I decided I loved the game -- I am the person I am today because of the people that have helped me along the way. If it weren't for the coaches that believed in me, pushed me, and encouraged me, I would have never grown so fond of a sport that changed my life entirely. Thank you, coaches, for everything.