No-hitter like no other
Eagles stand by grieving Cohoon
PLYMOUTH — Plymouth North senior captain Donnie Cohoon went through the usual game-day rituals, from grabbing a Cookie Monster at Marylou’s to finding his favorite parking spot.
It was going to be an unforgettable day regardless, because Cohoon was handed the honor of starting on Opening Day against Quincy. Cohoon made it more unforgettable, even though something was missing.
Someone special.
On Jan.23, Suzanne Cohoon, the mother to Donnie, Kathryn, Elizabeth, Andrew, and wife to Don Jr., died after four years courageously battling breast cancer. A nurse at South Shore Hospital for 27 years, Suzanne suddenly passed after being cancer-free for close to two years.
Head coach Dwayne Follette had Suzanne’s initials stitched on the team jackets and hats with the breast cancer pink ribbon to honor her this season.
“She was talking to me about what the home schedule looked like and that’s how she lived her life — brave to the end,” said Follette. “Donnie spent a lot of time with his best friends and in a time like this, that’s what you need, friends and family to have your back.”
Cohoon was filled with proud emotions talking about his mother. He thought of his mom from the very first warmup pitch in the bullpen, his first time on the hill without his mom yelling her favorite catchphrases.
“She would always tell me to ‘be spicy,’ ” Cohoon said with a laugh. “I can still hear her in the stands saying her little lines and it’s unbelievable how much she did for us and the sacrifices she made.”
As Cohoon finished off the top of the Presidents’ lineup in the first, the standard pump-you-up playlist started. Each song seemed to remind Donnie, he said later, of his mom.
In the seventh, Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” hit the speakers. Cohoon’s heart jumped as the 1980s classic guitar riff filled the air — that was his mom’s ringtone.
Cohoon’s best friends, the other nine seniors in the Plymouth North dugout, all held their breath as Cohoon finished a masterpiece of his own. A no-hitter, 3-0, while going 2-for-3 at the plate with a first inning, run-scoring triple.
“The last at-bat was pretty intense . . . we hadn’t said anything yet, but we all knew,” said senior left fielder Johnny Hayes.
“It was exciting but not surprising at all because (Donnie) is such a stud,” said fellow senior Jake Manfredi. “The last batter of the game felt like an eternity, but we all stormed him and the seniors all gave him a huge group hug on the field.”
A no-hitter, the game-winning RBI and his closest friends piling on him post-game. A storybook beginning to the season for Cohoon and Plymouth North, which reached 4-0 — including Cohoon leading an 8-6 win over previously unbeaten Silver Lake on Tuesday.
“I know she is going to be there all season and we all have something to play for,” said Cohoon. “She was influencing all of us.”