Gage Cawthon, Blackhawk male athlete of the year, almost wasn't on the Blackhawk baseball team.
Cawthon and Bryce Beckmann didn't make the cut as freshmen. Both did get on the team the next year.
Head baseball coach John King said it shows fortitude that the students tried out their sophomore year and that is a lifeskill that will benefit them throughout life.
Cawthon said King has taught him valuable life lessons including "giving it your all."
"Something he's always preached to us, no matter how low things get, you've got to stay even keel. No matter how high they get, stay even keel," Cawthon said. "Once you allow yourself to get too low or too high -- that's when mistakes happen. Keep a level head. That's really one of the main things he's taught us."
Cawthon attributed the loss in the first round of Regional play to that very paradigm.
"We had beaten that team (Clinton) earlier in the year," Cawthon said. "We jumped out to a 3-0 lead and things were looking good, then the wheels just fell off.
"As a senior going out ... that wasn't what we expected to happen, but we can't let that one game take away to conference and district championship and a thrilling game against Shiloh," Cawthon said.
Cawthon, the son of Adam and Mindy Cawthon, plans to attend Arkansas Tech University to study secondary education and coaching.
Sports on 05/25/2016