Softball ready for home action

Softball is making the adjustment from a fun spring break trip back to Grinnell life, with high hopes for the season ahead. Though the South Carolina weather was a bit colder than ideal, the team still had a great time.

“Spending just one week in Myrtle Beach helped our team out so much,” said Kristina Weber ’16.

“The spring break trip was a great way for people to gain experience and get to know each other,” said Jessica Menary ’13.

After the positive experience of the spring break trip, the team is “looking forward to everyone continuing to make improvements,” according to Menary. Along with some quality team bonding, the team members were able to learn about themselves and their style of play over the trip. Though the team was not able to take home a win from Myrtle Beach, they gained a lot of confidence and experience.

Jeanette Au ’16 catches a grounder during practice Thursday. Photo by John Brady

With a strong team dynamic, lots of hard work and drive, the softball team is poised to make its mark this spring.

“[We] support each other on and off the field,” Menary said. Weber added that she “couldn’t ask for a better team.”

“We have started off the year with a lot of injuries, but we have talked over some defense changes that put us at our best and the team is positive as we move forward,” said head softball coach Amanda Reckamp.

One especially tough loss was Kristina Weber ’16, who has had a great start to her career and was recently awarded Midwest Conference Performer of the Week but was injured during the trip and is out for the season. The team has refocused their defensive strategy to try to cover for Weber’s absence and is staying positive as they look forward.

One big change this year’s team has made is with regards to offensive output.

“We have scored 10 more runs in our first 10 games compared to last year,” Reckamp said.

Reckamp noted Summer Wilke ’15 and Aniela Wendt ’14 as the team’s leaders in hits, and Weber and Alyssa Bean ’16 as leading the team in RBIs.

Two other players, Lindsay Fujimoto ’15 and Grace Ryan ’14, have also made their mark thus far in the season. Fujimoto has successfully transitioned to the outfield, greatly benefiting the team. Ryan is also transitioning to a new position, spending her time at third base.

“Both Fujimoto and Ryan have greatly improved offensively from just a year ago. I look for them to make big impacts as the season moves forward,” Reckamp said.

The team is excited to spend time on their home fields, where they have not been able to have a full practice before this week. Both players and coaches have spoken of the positive dynamic between the team and coaches, and expressed this as a boon to future successes. Softball looks forward to making their mark in the conference game, hoping to get into the top two. This close-knit and determined team seems more than ready to take on more local teams in the coming weeks.

The team has their first home games of the season this weekend, hosting the Pioneer Softball Invitational with games on Saturday, April 6 at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. and on Sunday, April 7 at 9 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. This will be the team’s first competition since spring break.

The team is “focused on improving,” Weber said, and their hard work has set them up for success.