By Staff Writer Christina N.
With a 71% win percentage, a record of 6-3 & a trip to the playoffs for the first time in 6 years, Galileo’s Softball season can be considered its most successful in quite some time.
[bottom row, Left to Right] Beatrice S., Mia F., Kayliann S., Isabella I., Christina N., & Amy B.
The Lion’s season however, came to an end on May 10th, losing in the playoffs to George Washington High School (13-3) at Rossie Park. The whole game lasted only 5 innings as Washington got ahead by 10 runs. The highlight of the game for the Lions’ though was 3rd baseman, Mia F., hitting a grand slam that cleared all the bases.
While the Lions lost the playoff game, the overall season is still enough motivation for the team to believe in themselves for next season and seasons to come. They were the underdog team for years and made a huge comeback this year. They proved themselves worthy of going to playoffs as a lower division team and playing against a school who was guaranteed to be in the playoffs.
Mia F. commented that, “I feel pretty good about making it to playoffs. During the season that was the goal and I’m glad we made it.”
The turn-around this season wouldn’t have been possible without the new trio of coaches, Coach Tony, Pete, & Tad. The coaches pushed the team to not accept “trying their best” as an answer, but to work hard to get and achieve what they wanted at the end of each game. They worked the team hard during practices to be the best players they know they can be.
Another reason the team was much better this season was the overall positivism and commitment the team had this year. Compared to 3 years ago, before the pandemic, when the team barely had 9 players, this year’s team had a consistent 15 players. This gave the team a bigger advantage during practice and during games. The coaches made sure everyone would be able to play in each game, rotating players in and out.
Sadly, with the end of the season, the team has to say good-bye to its 2 seniors Isabella I. [catcher & center fielder] & Christina N. [center/left fielder & first base], who have been on the team since their freshman year. Isabella I. said, “I’m very proud of the team. Everybody came a long way and showed a lot of improvement over the season. We wouldn’t have been able to make it to playoffs without them.”
[bottom] Team dog Huda
Head coach Tony was reflective about this year’s team, saying, “The team did very well and came a long way these last 26 weeks. It’s hard to tell with any team when you coach them but they did very well. I told you [the team] the first game. You have the talent, you can do it and you came back after that. After that we won 6 after we lost the first game.” He added, “I enjoyed coaching and meeting new girls & teaching them how to play the game. I can’t guarantee that we’ll make it to playoffs but my goal is to always try.”
To always be caught up on everything Galileo Softball, follow the team on MaxPreps website.
