As Charles Henderson head baseball coach Derek Irons put it, there is more to life than just sports.

Friday night when the Trojans host Bibb County in a double header at Hogan’s Hole, the intersections of sports and “the real world” will meet when the teams come together in support of the military in Charles Henderson’s first-ever Hits for Heroes game.

“Angela (Dunning) out of Dothan hit us up and reached out back in the fall and told us what they (Hits for Heroes) do to raise money for the Wounded Warrior Project,” Irons said. “It’s our first year and we are really excited.”

Hits for Heroes is a nonprofit that raises money and awareness for military veterans through the sport of baseball.

At every Hits for Heroes game, all proceeds go to support the USO and Jeep Sullivan’s Wounded Warrior Outdoor Adventures.

In addition to the proceeds from the game going to support the United States military, each team will honor veterans in a special ceremony during the game.

“In the first game, we will honor all of the past players and current players’ families who have served in the military for both teams,” Irons said. “That will be in the fifth inning of the first game. Kind of our version of a fifth inning stretch.”

As a coach, Irons said he was honored to be able to pay tribute to members of the military through the game of baseball, but he also stressed that Friday could serve as a learning opportunity to his players.

“As a coach, we want our players to be well rounded when they are finished with our program,” Irons said. “There are a lot of bigger things than baseball in the world. There are people who defend our right to play baseball and hopefully this will be a teaching moment for the players.”

As for the game itself, Friday’s double header will pair two strong baseball teams against one another in a rematch of last year’s quarterfinals in the ASWA state tournament.

“They (Bibb County) are a really good team,” Irons said. “Traditionally, they are a really good baseball school and a good program. They were the toughest opponents we faced last year.”

Charles Henderson is just one of 20 high school teams participating in Hits for Heroes this year. For more information, visit hitsforheroes.org.