Comment: One loss won't mar Mustang season

They walked onto the field together as a team.

And as I watched the Lakewood Ranch High softball team walk away from the National Training Center following its 4-0 loss to Pembroke Pines Charter in the Class 6A state semifinals together, I couldn’t help but notice the dedication the Lady Mustangs showed not only for their sport but one another.

In a season in which Lakewood captured its first regional championship and advanced to the state semifinals for the first time in school history, the Lady Mustangs never lost sight of the importance of teamwork.

Sure, the players all had their share of individual accomplishments and accolades, but it’s what they were able to accomplish together as a team for which they will be remembered. They will be remembered for their dominance and their perseverance. They’ll be remembered for their district and regional championships and their state semifinal appearance — a first for the program.

The Lady Mustangs began paving the way for their legacy at the beginning of the season and cemented it further as the season continued.

And one game won’t change that.

“I’m not going to remember this year, and I’m not going to remember this team by this game,” first-year coach Tony Cummins said. “I’m going to remember that this team was loaded with special talent and special ladies that took our school further than they’ve ever gone before.”

Lakewood’s Fab Five seniors, as they’ve been dubbed by Cummins, now will move on to the next chapters in their storied careers. They helped pave the way for the program and in doing so left behind a legacy that will be remembered for years to come.

“The Fab Five lived up to every challenge that I gave them,” Cummins said. “They were the perfect example to the younger players. They will be missed.”

But with six starters from this season’s state semifinal roster and a freshman pitcher waiting in the wings, the future remains bright for the Lady Mustangs.

“It means so much,” senior Quillan Toler said. “To leave this kind of a legacy is something very special. We accomplished something no other team has, and I will always remember this experience.

“This year sets the bar high for every incoming team; but there is so much talent coming up through the system and with the returning players, I believe Lakewood Ranch is going to be that team to look out for,” Toler said.

And several years from now when the youth softball players of today become the high school softball players of tomorrow and they look back on the 2012 Lady Mustangs historic season, the final score won’t matter.

All that will matter is what the players were able to accomplish both on and off the field for themselves, their team, their school and their community.