During the summer before Patty entered fifth grade, she decided to try a new sport. Swim training was nearly over and Patty was the fastest swimmer in her age group. She had always been the best. The neighborhood was offering a one-week tennis training course. Patty and her friend Darla got permission from their parents to join.
On Saturday morning, Darla’s mom took the girls to a store and bought them each a good, used tennis racket. “If you girls stick to tennis, then we’ll talk about a new racket. These will do for now.” The girls were excited about their new purchases. On Monday morning, at 7:00 a.m., Patty’s mom woke her up. “It’s time for tennis!” Patty covered her face. “Mom, it’s too early!” She made great effort to get out of bed and down to the breakfast table. Patty finished breakfast and ran to Darla’s house, then they walked to the court.
Mrs. Cane, the tennis coach, lined everyone up and started with the basics. After that, Mrs. Cane tirelessly taught them to practice their forehand and backhand. By the end of the week, Patty had made impressive progress. Mrs. Cane commented that Patty had lots of potential. Darla, on the other hand, was struggling. The other teenagers were having a tough time of it, too. Patty was the only one who seemed to get somewhere.
Since then, Darla had always been out in the August heat, practicing her serves or hitting the ball. Patty wasn’t really interested. She felt she was such a “natural” for tennis that she really didn’t need to practice. By the end of the summer, Darla began to get the hang of it. She joined a neighborhood junior tennis team. There would be matches every Thursday. Patty wanted to join as well, but she didn’t want to miss her favorite TV show. She told herself that she would join it when she got some free time. If Darla had fun, she would join the team in the spring.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The week before school started, Mrs. Cane held another training course.
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Patty couldn’t stop thinking of her poor performance on the way home.
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No one is born a winner. People make themselves into winners by their own efforts. I learned this lesson from an experience many years ago. I took the head coaching job at a school in Baxley, Georgia. It was a small school with a weak football program. The school took part in the league matches every year. However, it never ended well. We were more of the audience, watching and cheering instead of sweating out in the fields.
Fortunately, the school held the tradition that the school’s old team was to play against the new team at the end of spring practice. For lack of resources, the old team bad no coach, and they didn’t even practice to prepare for the game.
I was assigned (指派) as the coach of the new team, which was why I was excited. I believed that we were going to win, but to my disappointment, we were defeated. I couldn’t believe I had got into such a situation. Thinking hard about it, I tried to figure out the reason and what I should do next.
It didn’t take long before I came to realize that my team was depending on me. Without proper guidance or previous experience, my team was at a loss what to do. I had to change my attitude so that I could bring out the best in them about their ability and potential.
I would let my action do the talking. First, I started doing anything I could to help them build a little pride. I could see their spirits lifted, with their head held high in great confidence. Most importantly, I began to treat them like winners. Only when they regarded themselves as winners could they willingly invest time and energy.
This summer, the other teams enjoyed their vacations.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Six months later, football season started.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________It was the last practice before the big gymnastics competition in Burlingville. The gymnastics team of Springtown High School had been training every day in the school vacation. They tried harder and wanted to do better. They had competed with the team from Maidstone High School several times. The competitions allowed the two teams to admire each other for their excellent performance and players’ qualities. They respected the game; they respected each other’s team more.
Today, the players of Springtown went home earlier. They would pack some food and water to have along the way to Burlingville. Before they went home, they went to their teacher to see their new uniform. Springton High School was in the countryside. The team made cookies and sold them at the market to get money to buy the uniform. They loved it very much, even though they were impressed with the uniforms of the team from Maidstone. Maidstone High School was a rich private school. It usually prepared two sets of uniforms for the competition — one for the morning and the other for the afternoon.
Early the next morning, the team of Springtown High School and their teacher got on a minibus to start their long trip. They would reach the railway station in Travers at about two o’clock and then take a train to Burlingville. They must be there by six o’clock and register for the competition.
The bus driver drove the bus through the country roads. Then suddenly, he parked the bus at the side of the road. There was something wrong with the engine. Unluckily, the driver couldn’t fix it in a short time. He called the company and asked them to send another bus for the gymnastics team. It was 90 minutes before another minibus came. Everyone jumped onto the bus. “Please hurry,” said the teacher.
When they finally arrived at Travers railway station, the bus driver helped the team carry the bags into the station. As soon as they got on the train, it started to move. Looking out of the window, the teacher saw the bus driver running towards the train door.
注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.开头已给出。
“Oh, no!” the teacher shouted. “The driver has our uniform bag!”
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Caught in complete hopelessness, the team from Springtown saw the players of Maidstone walking towards them.
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Jim stared at the ground and sighed in disappointment. Players from the opposing team raced past Jim, celebrating their shocking victory. They’d scored the game-winning goal just seconds before the end of the game.
“Just one word to describe a loss like that,” Jim mumbled to his teammate Devin.
“Terrible!” Devin sighed. “It was a tough one.” He trotted (小步快跑) toward the middle of the field to shake hands with the winning team. Jim walked slowly behind Devin. He unhappily slapped hands with the winners, then stopped to shut his eyes as the autumn air cooled his sweaty face.
“Terrible,” he repeated to himself as he sat on the bench and pulled his jacket on. “Let’s get some hot chocolate and watch the next game,” Devin said. There were eight teams in the YMCA league, so games would go on all morning. “Sorry. I’m heading home,” Jim said, “I’ve had enough soccer for today.”
As he reached the gate, Jim glanced back to see the next two teams take the field. They were jumping and shouting, excited to play. “That was us a little while ago, before we were discouraged.” Jim thought.
So why we lost the game at last? Jim asked himself. How did such a well-played game end up with such a terrible result? It was still clear in his head: Jim had the ball deep on the Jets’ side of the field, looking for Devin or another teammate to pass to. His team had outplayed the Jets for most of the game, but failed within the last seconds.
Jim let out a deep breath. The morning was growing warmer. Perfect for soccer. Jim looked back toward the field. He couldn’t see it, but he could hear the excited voices as the game continued.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
With a car’s horn beeping, Jim’s friends Tara and Bryan jumped out of the car.
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There came the turn for Tara and Bryan’s team to play the game.
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Emma was very excited Today was the championship baseball game! The winners would all get trophies(奖杯) and be the number one players in the town. Emma decided to bring home a trophy to put on her shelf. She had never won a trophy before.
She put on her red uniform and pulled her hair through the back of her baseball cap. She picked up her gloves and looked in the mirror. “I hope I get a hit today,” she said to herself.
On the way to the field, Emma felt nervous.
“Are you feeling OK, Emma?” her mother asked.
“I really don’t want to strike out(三击不中出局),” Emma said.
“Just keep your eye on the ball and don’t feel afraid. You can do it,” Emma’s mother said.
Emma was a great hitter in practice, but she had never hit a ball during a game. She always struck out.
When the game started, Emma cheered loudly for her friends. She caught a fly ball in the Outfield, and everyone cheered for her. Emma struck out when it was her turn to hit the ball, but her team was doing well.
The game was tied(平局), and it was her team’s last chance to score. The team’s coach encouraged, “Believe in yourselves, and you are the best.” Frankie was up first, and he hit the ball hard to get on base(垒). Next up was Henry, but he struck out. Kara hit the ball, but she was tagged out at first base. Frankie was able to run to third. That meant he could score and win the game if the next batter(击球手) got a good hit. Emma was the team’s last hope.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Emma stepped up to the base.
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Emma’s team won!
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On a bright Saturday, my peaceful lunchtime was suddenly interrupted when my dad surprised me with an unplanned idea. I couldn’t hide my annoyance as what was supposed to be a relaxing Saturday turned into a day focused on football — a sport I wasn’t very excited about.
Many of my friends loved sports, while I preferred to find comfort in the pages of a good book rather than run around on a football court. My lack of interest resulted in average performance on the team, and I often felt like I was a problem for both my coach and teammates.
Things changed last week when our coach announced a coming match against the champions scheduled for a month later. The realization that this important game would have a big audience only made me more anxious. The fear of possibly letting down the team weighed on me.
Determined to make a positive impact, I decided to practice hard every day. My motivation came from wanting to help the team and to overcome the self-doubt affecting my performance.
As the match day approached, my teammates seemed unsure about including me in the lineup (阵容). I wouldn’t have minded sitting out, but the situations were different. With one player short, they reluctantly (不情愿地) included me, and The Thunder Strikers, our team, stepped onto the field to enjoy cheers from the crowd.
The pressure was intense. The game started, and within the ten minutes, I received a warning. Before long, the referee showed me a second yellow card, forcing me to leave the field. When I got back into the game, the score was tied, and the next goal would decide the winner.
As the ball came toward me, I felt a bit scared. My teammates seemed tired, and the other team really wanted to win. With great courage, I kicked the ball. The opponents (对手), maybe not expecting much from me because of my earlier struggles, were surprised when the ball went past the goalkeeper.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The Thunder Strikers won!
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