The batter swallows their fear as they swing and hit the ball.

Today the softball team plays against Pike.

“I am a junior this year, so I have played Pike twice, and we won both times,” junior Gracelyn Bowles, outfielder,  said. “We practice the same as any other game, and we make sure not to play down to their level. Strengths that will be proven helpful against Pike is being aggressive early in the count.”

Ensuring teams have plans for situations is critical in overcoming stress.

“In our practices, we usually start off with our pregame, and then we work on situations,” she said. “We practice knowing where we need to throw the ball or where the ball needs to go during a certain play.”

Practices are a great source of trial and error for tactics that have room for improvement.

“Our practices leading up to last year’s game didn’t really affect that much on our game against Pike,”  sophomore Breinna Harlow, first baseman, said. “It did give us more confidence on what we needed to work on. We work on a lot of defense and offense. We also like to work on our fielding drills as we make sure we have those down.”

Consistency is crucial for successful games.

“We practice the same every game,” sophomore Macy Smith, catcher, said. “Focusing on getting down the fundamentals, and making sure everybody knows the plays.”

The role of coaches is pivotal for the success of players.

“During practice we do a little bit of everything, hitting and defense,” Coach Sara Allison said. “We focus on getting the everyday plays right every time. Our goal as coaches is to help our players make the routine plays and keep the ball in the infield the best we can.”

Softball is a game of collaboration, so allowing all players to compete is crucial.

“Some strategies we have gathered is to get up early and start scoring early in the game, so we can give our non-starters a chance to play in the next four endings of the game,” Bowles said.

If mistakes do arise, the team is ready to handle them.

“Our strategies are to get on and not make any mistakes, but if we do, we lift each other up,” Harlow said. “Our whole team has pretty good coordination. We can all hit the ball pretty well.”

Suppressing negative thoughts during games prompts players to perform their best.

“Our experience helps us play more loose and confident and lets our girls go out and play rather than thinking about each and every play,”  Coach Allison said.

With the addition of upcoming freshmen, the softball team is evolving.

“We have a lot of talented freshmen that are coming up to help us this year,” Smith said. “I think it will help us improve against, not only Pike but also other schools.”