It seems that the varsity boys baseball and girls softball teams have undergone a slight role-reversal from their reputation in years past this far in the season. The softball team has had the most successful start to its season in years, and although the baseball team is still winning games, it has not done as well as in previous seasons.
The softball team is 3-4 in league and 8-11 overall in the El Camino division, but has lost many of their games by a very close margin. According to senior Lauren Taylor, the team has won more games this season than it did in the past few years combined. “It’s amazing to see how much we have improved already this season, especially in comparison to past years,” Lauren said. “We don’t have a perfect record, but we are third place in league and it really shows how much better we have become.”
According to Lauren, many young softball players have played major roles this season and promise for years to come, with a wider array of pitchers and hitters than in seasons past. Also, sophomore Kelsey Ayers says that the new coaching staff has assimilated well into the team setting.
“We have an almost completely new varsity coaching staff that is great,” Kelsey said. “They all put a lot of time and effort into improving the softball program and building a foundation that we can continue to grow from in the upcoming years.”
The players also have found a greater sense of unity and teamwork than in years past as well as a strong desire to succeed.
“The team has improved immensely and everyone has really put in a lot of effort during our practices and games,” Kelsey said. “We all try really hard and we push each other to do better, and by doing that, we all improve.”
The baseball team, which made it to the CCS finals the past 2 years in a row, is currently 5-6 in league and 10-10 overall, but its season has included a 2-18 loss to Saint Francis. One should note that the baseball team is also competing in the De Anza league, which provides the greatest competition.
The loss of 7 key seniors, such as Erik Johnson, ‘08, Bryan Macomber, ’08 and Connor Smith, ’08, has slightly hurt the team, yet senior Keane Johnson believes that the loss of many seniors has not proven too detrimental.
“Every year a team loses seniors, and we’ve had many talented players move up to varsity,” Keane said.
Many underclassmen are having to step up to the plate, both metaphorically and literally, in an attempt to continue a successful season. The team is composed of one freshman, two sophomores, nine juniors and six seniors.
“The team is really young, and so we’ve had some trouble against teams who we would’ve beaten no problem last year,” senior Brendan Ferrell said. “But the team’s definitely getting better and better as the season goes on.”
Players have mixed hopes as to making the CCS championships, yet it is definitely a possibility.
“We’re right on the cusp of making CCS, so it’s definitely possible,” Keane said.
Brendan agrees that CCS is within reach.
“It’s an uphill climb, and as long as we keep going in the right direction, improving every game, we could definitely have a shot at the playoffs,” Brendan said. “We can’t let up though.”