Derrek Vaughn | The Valdosta Daily TimesThe Gwinnett Braves ready to compete in the state fall games.

VALDOSTA – The Atlanta Braves may been been knocked out of the postseason but the Gwinnett Braves kept Choptober alive this past weekend.

Led by head coach Elmo Victorio, the 12-member softball team traveled down to South Georgia in hopes of a gold medal in the Special Olympics fall state games.

Hosted in Freedom Park, Special Olympics athletes descended on Valdosta to compete in the fall state games during the weekend. Ranging from Hall County in the North Georgia mountains to Augusta to the coast, athletes from across the state participated in softball, bocce and golf from Friday to Sunday.

Coaching the Gwinnett Braves for the past 10 years, Victorio has traveled all across Georgia for Special Olympics events.

Victorio’s connection to the Special Olympics is a personal one. His son, Thomas Hickman, is a shortstop on the team.

“Early on, I knew he was athletic, so I started coaching him,” Victorio said.

Hickman gravitated toward baseball and softball early on and hasn’t stopped playing since.

“Baseball has always been my number one,” Hickman said. “I’ve been playing it since I was 6.”

A native of Snellville, Hickman, 29, is a talented shortstop who can man any position on the field. Just don’t ask him to dig grounders out from first base or behind home plate.

In high school, the talented fielder made it all the way to final cuts for powerhouse Brookwood High School’s baseball team. Hickman is fiercely competitive but appreciates the closeness with his Braves teammates.

“Of course we’re trying to win, but at the same time, you have to have fun,” Hickman said.

The Braves are a family-oriented team with most players being close friends who spend time outside the diamond. Even Hickman’s girlfriend plays on the team, he said.

That family atmosphere extends to the Special Olympics at large. Walking around the softball complex at Freedom Park, constant sighs of positivity and support are visible. Whether its players, coaches, family or volunteers, there is both an audible and palpable sense of encouragement and joy.

Danielle Smith can feel it, too.

The special education paraprofessional works at Moulton-Branch Elementary School. She has worked with special-needs children for five years in Lowndes County and volunteers for the Special Olympics.

She said she believes the fall state games provide a great opportunity for fun and to display the talent of Special Olympics athletes.

“This is just proving to themselves and everyone else that they can do just as much as anybody else,” Smith said.

Fans will be able to watch these athletes two more times in the coming years as the fall state games will return to Valdosta for 2020 and 2021.

The weekend turnout and response impressed even the man tasked with running the entire event.

“We have 48 agencies from around the state here this weekend,” said David Crawford, director of programs-south for Special Olympics Georgia.

“This is kind of their Super Bowl.”