Question

Tryout
B. Haq

Damien was not going to let it rest. He was determined to get to the bottom of it. Understandably, he wanted to know what he was doing right, but more importantly, what he was NOT doing well.

Every time he tried to shoot the ball into the basket, it either hit the backboard or bounced off the metal ring. By the time the tryout had ended, his frustration had hit the ceiling. He slammed the ball onto the floor and observed it bounce endlessly before it came to rest. Everybody but him and Coach Bardin had already gone home. The silence in the gym made his thoughts scream louder in his head. Does it mean I won’t make the team? What if I am the only one not selected? Intense fear of failure gripped him, and he felt feeble in his knees and collapsed, prepared to cry.

“My boy! It was a good tryout.” Coach Bardin patted squarely between his slumped shoulders. “Get going.” Coach threw the balls in the aged, musty storage cupboard that held balls, bats, gloves, nets, and everything sports-related and padlocked it.

But Damien was not going anywhere. He was still on his knees, trying to fathom what Coach Bardin had just uttered. What could be remotely good about this tryout? He was bewildered and felt nauseous just thinking about it. He desperately wanted to be a junior-high basketball star like his brother.

The next moment, he sprang up and raced toward the coach, who was hastily walking away. The sound of Damien's shoes skidding on the hardwood floor echoed the urgency he felt in his mind.

“Coach! Coach!” Damien shouted. Coach Bardin turned the corner at the far end of the hallway and disappeared. Damien lunged and sprinted toward the disappearing shadow.

“Coach Bardin!” Damien hollered, breathlessly. “I must speak with you.”

All this racket made Coach Bardin stop in his tracks, and he spun around on his heels.

“What’s the matter, Damien?” Coach was alarmed to see Damien crying and running toward him. He ran toward Damien, who was about to lose his balance and take a nasty fall amidst the turmoil in his head. Coach caught him and sat him down on a bench.

“What’s all the fuss?” Coach asked, scrutinizing him.

Between stifled sobs, Damien vented his dilemma.

“That’s not true at all,” Coach calmly explained. “Your dribbling and passing are excellent; all you need is to focus on shooting and rebounding. Above all, you must have patience with perseverance. You will get there, I promise.”
What can the reader infer about how Damien feels at the end of the story?
A He is hopeful that he can work harder to make the team.
B He feels sad because he knows he will never make the team.
C He is surprised that he has been playing very well all along.
D He feels satisfied that he has successfully achieved his goal.
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Answer 1

A. He is hopeful that he can work harder to make the team.

Coach Bardin’s reassurance that Damien’s dribbling and passing are excellent and that with patience and perseverance “you will get there” leaves Damien encouraged and optimistic about improving to make the team.