Youth Diaries: Lessons I Learned on My Way to the World Series

By Jenna Thorkelson, Snow Canyon High School

When I was twelve years old, my best friends and I went to San Bernardino, California, to compete in the Western Regional Little League Tournament. To everyone’s surprise—and I mean everyone’s—we actually won. We were the first 12u Utah team to move past this point in baseball and softball. Back then, it was my biggest accomplishment. A few weeks later, we placed 5th when we went to Portland, Oregon, for the World Series. Not only did we play teams from all around the nation, we played against teams from around the world. We were devastated to fall short of reaching our first-place goal.

Two years later, our team won the Western Regionals again, and we made our second trip to the World Series in Kirkland, Washington. There, we gained the title of World Champs!

I’ve been told that I should be proud. After all, how many teens can say they are world champs? Don’t get me wrong. I am proud, but that is not where I plan on peaking in my life. Neither is this title the most important thing about this experience to me. I don’t have “World Champ” tattooed across my forehead, and unless you’re a close friend or family member, you probably don’t even remember that I once was the MVP of a World Series.

The most important things I gained from this journey were my relationships with my teammates, a good work ethic, and resilience.

I can think of a dozen teams I’ve competed with that are better than my own, but those teams will never know the kind of team chemistry our team has. Most elite softball teams draw from five or more different cities, and often, they draw from more than one state. On the other hand, my beloved team draws from a singular high school, with almost half of us living in the same neighborhood. To have as much success as we did with this kind of a sample pool is ridiculous.

But the success is beside the point; we are the closest family of a team I could ever imagine. We grew up together. Most of us were on this team when we were eight year olds, and we only gained and lost a few along the way. I couldn’t dream of a better group of sisters. Together we have cried over countless wins and losses. Together we have stayed late into the night to win a tournament or left with the bittersweet sun still shining. Together we have created memories that will never die.

Beyond the friendships that this experience built, I learned how to work hard and how to bounce back. We began every practice before the sun rose and before the St. George heat would become too unbearable. We fielded enough ground balls to fill an MLB stadium to the brim. We took batting practice from live pitching and often stayed late to see a few extra pitches. Every day of those summers, I pitched to my dad in my backyard after practice was over. We did this before the first World Series and again with even more ferocity before the second. The odds of returning were very slim, but we were beyond determined. Not only did we return, we won.

No matter how cool my cousins think it is that I won the World Series, it will never be as cool to me as the love I have for the girls who won this title with me.

Jenna Thorkelson