A Lesson In Sportsmanship: 12-Year-Old With Down Syndrome Hits 'Home Run'
SCOTCH PLAINS, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- Playing sports is about more than just winning and losing.
Good sportsmanship can be a lifelong lesson: A lesson that some youngsters in New Jersey carried out perfectly for a 12-year-old with Down syndrome.
Benji Fei, his brother, Dylan, and his best friend, Evan Doyle, love to play sports at Terrill Middle School in Scotch Plains.
"If the Yankees don't play good, you can play for them next season!" Dylan said.
"Oh, good!" Benji said.
"He's always really nice and saying nice things about people. He's always lifting you up and feeling a lot better," Evan said.
The friends play in the same baseball league, but on different teams. Benji's mother captured the moment the 12-year-old would never forget.
"He's always making everybody else feel better so I thought 'Why not make him feel better for a day?'" Evan said.
Benji hit the ball, but got a big assist from Evan, who was catching for the other team. Evan overthrew first base by a lot. The ball traveled so far Benji had time to round the bases for a home run.
"He had a giant smile on his face and put both arms up in the air," Evan said.
It gave us a special moment rarely seen in sports: Two teams celebrating in unison, CBS2's Steve Overmyer reported.
"The next day he came into school and everybody was congratulating him," Evan said.
"When you were standing at the plate and the pitcher throws you the pitch, what were you thinking?" Overmyer asked Benji.
"I was thinking 'See you later!'" Benji said.
The outcome of the game will be forgotten. The moment it created will live forever, Overmyer reported.
