Switching Playing Fields
by Torey
Chapter 1
I never had a problem with Beth Garrison.
She was the best athlete in the seventh grade at Spring Hill Middle School.
I was on her team in Little Baseball. She was the only girl on the team, but she could hit the ball farther than any of us.
She excelled in basketball, volleyball, just about any sport she played.
But everyone was shocked when she showed up on the first day of two-a-days. As good of an athlete as she was, girls weren't supposed to play football.
It didn't sit well with most of the guys on the team.
"Everyone will laugh at us if she plays," said Ray Lefford, a big offensive lineman who already weighed around 250 pounds.
"I'm afraid there is nothing we can do about it," our coach, Coach Jackson said. "Since girls don't have a football team, we can't keep her from playing."
He mentioned something called Title IX. He also mentioned something called a "no-cut rule."
"That's the reason we can't keep you from playing, Lacy," said Josh Bryan, our quarterback.
That was directed toward me. I was one of the smallest on the team, and not the best athlete. I didn't think I was the worst either.
There was one way to keep Beth off the team. She never backed away from a challenge.
Big Lefford challenged her to a duel in a drill we call "bull in the ring." She would go head-to-head with another player on the team in full pads.
Whoever lost the battle would quit the squad.
What does this have to do with me? Lefford was too big, she wouldn't possibly go up against him and it would be fair.
There were a few players she could go one-on-one with and it would seem fair.
I was one of them. And despite my protests, I was chosen to go up against her one-on-one.
"You can do this," Lefford said.
I got into a three-point stance. So did Beth.
"I'm going to take you down, Lucas," she snarled.
As soon as Josh blew the whistle, we collided while the rest of the guys cheered. Rivets seemed to pop when our helmets and shoulder pads collided.
Things got really quiet when she knocked me flat on my back.
She raised her arms and danced around.
"You've got to quit Lacy, not me!" she shouted.
The guys were in disbelief.
Me, I was totally embarrassed.
"I...I challenge you double or nothing," I shouted back.
"Well, I dunno," she said.
But then she thought for a second.
"OK, if you win, you're back on the team," she said. "But you may not like what you'd have to do if you lose again."
"And what is that?" I said, hoping for a chance at redemption.
"Field hockey practice starts this afternoon from what I hear," she said with a wide grin. "You lose, you'll have to join the field hockey team."
The guys started laughing.
"You mean the girls' field hockey team?" I asked.
"I don't believe there's a boys team," she said.
"Do it, Lacy, knock her on her seat," Lefford said.
"You beat her and maybe she'll challenge you to the best two-of-three," Josh said. "Then you can get her to quit."
"Better think long and hard about this, Lacy," Beth said. "You lose, and you'll look awfully cute chasing a ball with a stick...in a skirt!"
"You're on!" I shouted, getting back in a three-point stance.
Josh blew the whistle. The guys cheered. Rivets popped.
She knocked me on my seat again.
####
The auxiliary gym was no man's land.
It's where the girls had P.E. It's where the cheerleaders practice.
It's where the girls athletic teams have their locker-rooms.
It was also where the field hockey team was holding signups. It was where the team meeting would be held before it hit the field.
It was going to be the second scene of my humiliation.
Beth and some of the football players walked behind me to make sure I followed through.
I never felt more alone as I shut the door between them and me and walked into the gym, joining the line of seventh grade girls joining the team for the first time.
"Can I help you, Mr. Lacy?" asked Coach Martin.
We had co-ed P.E. classes in sixth grade. Boys and girls were in separate classes in seventh and eighth grade. She was my teacher last year.
She was young. All of us boys in our class last year had a crush on her.
"I'm...I'm," I stuttered.
"Spit it out," she said.
"I'm here to join the field hockey team," I said.
The chatter, the giggling in the gym stopped. You could have heard a pin drop.
"Coach Martin, we can't let him be on the team," protested Gina Lenetti, who was an eighth grader and team captain.
Coach Martin looked up at Gina from her seat.
"Our state has an equal rights amendment," she said. "If he's serious about being on the team, he gets to be on the team. You remember, Bay Springs had a boy on their team a couple of years ago. You are serious about this, aren't you, Mr. Lacy?"
I nodded my head yes.
"Ok, then, take a seat on the bleachers with the rest of the girls," Coach Martin. "We'll start our meeting as soon as we're done with signups."
I got some strange looks as I walked over to the bleachers.
"You can sit by me if you like," said Kim Franks.
I'd known Kim since Kindergarten. I was glad to see one friendly face.
"OK ladies, listen up," Coach Martin said as she approached the bleachers with our assistant coach, Coach Parker.
"Coach Parker and Miss Lenetti are going to pass out forms you need to get your parents to sign. We'll have a trainer here tomorrow to give physicals. You will also notice a sheet with team rules."
I looked down at the sheet she was talking about.
"Girls, being a Lady Tiger is a priviledge, not a right," Coach Martin said. "To be a member of this team, you must follow all of the rules to the letter. There are no exceptions. Any questions, raise your hands."
I was still sort of in a state of shock when I read the rules. Some were universal. Others, I thought, couldn't possibly apply to me."
I was a too scared to raise my hand. I felt like crawling under the bleachers. I didn't want to draw attention to myself. I wanted to be as stealth as possible.
I found out that wasn't possible, not when a few hands shot up.
The first question was about me.
"Yes Miss Mitchell," Coach Martin said, acknowledging the first hand that shot up.
"Everybody has to follow the rules, including Lucas?" she asked.
"Every rule is to be followed on that sheet to the letter, no exceptions, not even for Mr. Lacy," Coach Martin replied.
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Comments
Not An Unfamilar Setup...
...though I can't remember whether I've read one before with field hockey as the destination.
I hope the story runs more in the direction of fun than humiliation. (Glad our hero has at least the one friend on the team here at the start.)
Eric
Switching Fields
I wonder what the team rules are?
There seems to be a potential conflict developing between commonsense and equal rights legislationor at least the application of that legislation in this arena.
This is a good start, and I look forward to future installments.
I'm pleased that you have added whitespace between the paragraphsI find that far more readable.
Prefers Spacing
Bike Resources
Well I think someone let his ego
go ahead of his reason. Sorry Mr. Lacy you screwed up. However I wonder if the decision to make him be the bull was intentional, to set him up for a fall. And so you know, there was a minor mistake editing missed.
By the way, I really hope that Beth does not get off on humiliation, because I can't help but think that some of the football team players will.
Faraway
Big Closet Top Shelf
Where you can fool around like you want to and most you get is some bemused good ribbing!
Faraway
Big Closet Top Shelf
Where you can fool around like you want to and most you get is some bemused good ribbing!
Who's ego?
I quote: "Big Lefford challenged her to a duel" She didn't have to take the challenge, did she? I think not. She was assured of being on the team due to Title IX and the "no cut" rule. That was what ultimately lead to his humiliation. I would be very surprised if she isn't into humiliation, she seems to have the same "macho jock" mentality as the football players. She is the one who came up with the terms for the 'double or nothing' bet. So whether or not Lacy had a problem with Beth, Beth obviously had no liking for Lacy (why?). "Not only will I knock him on his butt, I'll make him pay for every bit of humiliation I've suffered; even though he wasn't one of the ones who did it."
But unless I missed something, Lacy had join the field hockey team, nothing was said about staying on the team. As it appears obvious there will be a fair amount of humiliation from the members of both the football and field hockey teams, he should bail as soon as he can. Otherwise this looks to be another femdom/forced/humiliation tale.
KJT
"Being a girl is wonderful and to torture someone into that would be like the exact opposite of what it's like. I don’t know how anyone could act that way." College Girl - poetheather
“When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn’t become a king. The palace becomes a circus.” - Turkish Proverb
There is more
Now that you think of it.
She was on the same team in Little Baseball as the protagonist. ~She had a keen idea of his capabilities
She accepted a duel, but also - a substitution. ~She did it not because she wanted to kick Big Lefford, she may have decided this was a way to get in
She was the one to mock Lacy into the double or nothing. ~See the first point. She knew she was going to win this one
And yes nothing was said about staying on the team. But when are teenagers reasonable and have accomplished rules lawyering certificate?
Faraway
Big Closet Top Shelf
Where you can fool around like you want to and most you get is some bemused good ribbing!
Faraway
Big Closet Top Shelf
Where you can fool around like you want to and most you get is some bemused good ribbing!
So I repeat
Who's ego? It seems more about building hers up and tearing his down than him being a victim of his own ego. If he was motivated enough to be on a sports team in the first place, you know he isn't gonna turn down a challenge. I honestly don't know many people who play sports expecting to lose. No, they do expect to win, even if it is a long shot. If as you say a teenager isn't smart enough to figure out he doesn't have to stay on the field hockey team, then he isn't smart enough to refuse the challenge in the first place. As somebody said below, he was apparently set-up by the other members of the football team, and Beth went along with it as a way of boosting her own ego at his expense.
By the way, the fact that she has been on other teams with him suggests that not only does she know his capabilities, she also knows he doesn't have a problem with her, yet she still went along with the other jocks and even upped the ante.
In short, he isn't the one with the ego problem.
k
"Being a girl is wonderful and to torture someone into that would be like the exact opposite of what it's like. I don’t know how anyone could act that way." College Girl - poetheather
“When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn’t become a king. The palace becomes a circus.” - Turkish Proverb
I remember playing
field hockey at school.... Nasty game, All those flying sticks! the opposition not caring if they hit you instead of the ball....Lets hope Lucas finds it more to his liking.
Kirri
P.S....Nearly forgot! Good first part,Looking forward to reading more soon.
Cute
I'm guessing it means wearing a skirt?
Heh.
My eldest son somehow got picked for a county hockey match one winter, which puzzled all of us since he hadn't played at that level before. I wonder if they had illness problems or something.
Come the match, early one Sunday morning, Cannock somewhere I think, it was very cold and frosty. The outside all-weather pitch had a thermometer fixed to one of the lighting posts: it read -7C. I wondered if the match would be postponed, but no. Off they went, full bottomed joggers and sweatshirts with bibs over to identify the teams.
Just as halfway came the thermometer had climbed to -4C and our centre forward decided it was warm enough. Off came the bottoms and she pulled on a hockey skirt. There were many wide open mouths among the spectators (sorry, I mean the parents who had driven our kids to the match) since most of us hadn't realised she was female up to that point.
Needless to say this entirely destabilised the opposition and my son's team won comfortably. I still don't know how we ended up with a 'mixed' team.
Penny
Switching Playing Fields
OH No! That last remark means something that Lacy will not like, not one bit. But hat about Beth, will SHE have to follow EVERY rule?
May Your Light Forever Shine
May Your Light Forever Shine
What should we expect except a fine adventure....
....with the family name Lacy? He might be glad that his last name isn't Figlia, yes. I wasn't all that athletic in school, but I'm sure I would have had no problem sitting and warming the bench, if it meant I had to follow all the rules like this team! Thanks for a great beginning to a great story!
She was born for all the wrong reasons but grew up for all the right ones.
Possa Dio riccamente vi benedica, tutto il mio amore, Andrea
Love, Andrea Lena
Every Rule - Some speculation.
RAMI
Having to follow "every rule" is going to be interesting.
Well, we know at least one rule will be to wear the proper uniform, which is a skirt. What other interesting rules are there for this team?
Just speculating, but lets guess at some others?
A sports bra?
Some special frilly panties?
Maybe tights?
Having to attend, to get in shape, either an aerobics class or perhaps a dance class (ballet) in some sexy leotard and tights?
Attending extracurricular events to raise team spirit, such as sleep overs?
With a last name of Lacy, which could easily pass for a girl's first name, I guess "Lucas" will now fade away.
RAMI
RAMI
Seems to me that he got set
Seems to me that he got set up by the jocks on the football team. He was probably the one player they didn't mind losing from the team.
A Great start...
...to what looks to be a fun story! I would guess that not only will Lucas be in a skirt, but a sports bra will be required also! Oh! If only I could have been in his shoes at his age!
Diane
Proper Protection
On the other hand will Beth wear all the required equipment including a cup?
Michelle B
I was assigned to girls PE in High school
It didn't last though, but it is right where I should have been. It was prophetic. :)
I have never accepted the
I have never accepted the idea that a particular sport is either in the male domain or the female domain, with the sole exception of physical ability. This would be football with the pads,helmet and other necessary safety items worn by the players. Then you have linemen that weigh in the very upper 200s and well into the 300s.and if you are a small male or a female playing in the game, you are immediately outclassed weight wise and THAT can or could cause serious medical issues if you are hit. Other than that single game, why should ANYONE worry about whether the person is male or female IF they can perform on the field, court, ball park or pitch or where ever the game might be played. It comes down to talent, skill and a desire to actually want to play the game as it is intended to be played.
Just my feelings on this and Title IX rules. Janice Lynn
I remember reading this first
I remember reading this first chapter a few years ago, This was a wonderful and I do mean wonderful buildup. Back then I was new to TG fiction, and in a way I'm still a novice. But part of me is drawn toward the main character, I can't help but feel for him. Part of me is wishing everything would work out for him, still another part of me is wishing he'll be and please pardon my expression here, 'Put through the Ringer' if you catch my drift.