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Cambridge Christian Set For Mission Trip

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By ADAM ADKINS

The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 27, 2008

TAMPA - The Cambridge Christian baseball team will depart early Monday morning on a weeklong trip it hopes will serve as a great learning experience - on and off the field.

Twelve Lancers players and five coaches are headed to the Dominican Republic on a seven-day, five-city, 10-game excursion. The trip is through SCORE International, an organization that for the past 23 years has taken players overseas on short-term mission trips. It cost $1,100 per person and was funded through private donations.

While baseball may be a big part of the trip, Cambridge Christian coach Rick Shears believes his team is going to take away much more than whatever their win-loss record happens to be. "I think it's going to be an eye-opener for our kids," Shears said.

Some of the areas the Lancers will visit will be impoverished, Shears said, and it's a fact he has tried to relay to his players that will be attending the trip, considering it's likely going to be much different than what they have at home.

"With us being a private school and a lot of our kids come from pretty affluent families, I think they're going to see something different," Shears said. "We've told them that our dugout at Doc Nance Field could probably house three families, could be three homes, and that's what they're going to see."

Knowing the situation they are walking into, the Cambridge Christian caravan decided to help out the best it can. Each member is bringing an extra suitcase with various items, such as clothes, shoes, baby formula and sporting equipment, to donate and distribute to the locals in the areas they visit.

"We asked them SCORE if we could do it, and they said, 'Absolutely. The more the merrier,'" Shears said.

The players and coaches also will offer testimony between and after games to the townspeople in attendance as part of their missionary work, Shears said.

The trip won't all be about giving, however. The Lancers are hoping to come home with a little something as well - a few victories.
Shears is hoping this trip will pay big dividends for a program looking to build on the most successful season in school history after Cambridge Christian finished as the Class 1A state runner-up in May.

The Lancers must replace just four seniors from that squad, though recently graduated senior pitcher Michael Miller will accompany the team on this trip, and Shears is hoping to see this group rise to the challenge of playing against what he figures to be quality opponents in some tough environments.

"We know we're going to be facing some very good teams because they are a very good baseball country," Shears said. "Whenever Americans come down there to play, from what I've been told, is they get very excited to play. When we go into a town the whole town comes out to watch them play us. We know we're going to be facing some stiff competition down there, so it's going to be kind of fun to see how the kids react to that."

Reporter Adam Adkins can be reached at (813) 657-4533 or aadkins@tampatrib.com. Visit throughout the week as members of Cambridge Christian's caravan write about their experiences during their weeklong trek through the Dominican Republic. Keyword: Preps.

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