Chapter 6
Allie didn’t talk to Coach Anderson about her spiking for the rest of the week. She felt too embarrassed and disappointed in herself.
She just wanted to pretend that Monday’s match hadn’t happened. The less Allie had to think about it, the better she seemed to play. But whenever Allie remembered what had happened, she played really badly.
On Saturday morning, Allie met Nikki at school again.
“Let’s run a few laps again, Allie,” said Nikki. “Then we’ll get right to work.”
“Sounds good, Coach Nikki,” said Allie. “I’m ready to get started.”
After they ran laps and stretched, Nikki said, “So, Allie, Coach Anderson told me what happened at your match on Monday.”
Allie felt her face heat up. “She did?” Allie asked.
“Yeah. And I wanted to tell you, it’s not a big deal,” said Nikki.
“Yes it is,” Allie said. “Why? I froze up and hit the ball right into the net. I let the other team score.”
Nikki smiled at Allie. “I know that feeling,” Nikki said. “Believe me, I know. But we only had one practice together. And it was only one point.”
“I guess,” Allie said. She started to feel a little bit better.
“Besides,” continued Nikki. “You won the match, right? Coach said you had some awesome blocks. She also said that you served really well.”
“She did? Cool,” Allie said. Then she frowned. “I just wish I hadn’t made that mistake.”
“I make mistakes all the time,” Nikki said. “Everyone does. The key is not to let one mistake ruin the rest of your game. You just have to let it go and get your mind back on the next play.”
“Really?” Allie asked. “Even when it’s a really bad mistake?”
“Yes,” Nikki said firmly. “Everyone has their ups and downs. It’s part of playing the game. Now, let’s run through your approach a few times, and then we’ll start hitting.”
Allie was quiet as they started working on her approach. For the second Saturday in a row, what Nikki had said made sense. And for the second Saturday in a row, Allie felt more confident in herself.
* * *
The next match was on Tuesday afternoon. Just like she had at the match the week before, Allie started to feel nervous when she realized that it was her turn to spike.
The more she worried about letting down her teammates and disappointing her coach, the worse she felt. All of the confidence Allie had gotten during practice with Nikki was gone.
Lizzie called, “Allie!”
Allie looked up. The ball was headed toward her.
Just like Nikki had taught her, Allie took three steps, jumped, and swung. But at the very last second, she closed her eyes. The ball fell to the floor right next to her.
The girls from the other team cheered and laughed. “Someone’s scared of the ball!” one of the girls said.
Allie’s teammates patted her on the back. “Don’t worry about it,” Lizzie said. “You’ll get the next one.”
Allie felt like she was going to cry. She looked over at Coach Anderson, who was sitting on the bench.
Coach gave her a kind look, stood up, and motioned to the official for a substitution.