Softball prepares for first game
Team executes daily training to strengthen for season
April 3, 2015
A positive word to St. Louis Park softball fans: prepare to be pleased, according to head coach Al Wachutka.
Wachutka said the teams’ first game should be in its favor due to the players’ hard work and improvement.
Junior and varsity player Mackenzie Evenson said the teams’ competitor, Bloomington Jefferson, will be hard to beat, but definitely manageable.
“I think we are a better team this year,” Evenson said. “Our coach Wachutka thinks that we have improved since last year, skill wise, so I think that we can play to their ability.”
Wachutka said the teams’ first game is important because it is a measuring tool of how the rest of the season will go.
“My expectations are that we will play sound defense, and that we will compete with them throughout the entire game,” Wachutka said. “We want to set the tone right as we begin the game so I hope that they start off on a good leg.”
According to Wachutka, the first game of the season is a time where the upperclassmen, who have been playing for years, can show their leadership abilities and play the positions they have in the past.
“Lauren Resnick will be pitching because she has had that role in the past. Shea Swanson has been our catcher, and Mackenzie Evenson has seen a lot of field time,” Wachutka said. “Those guys, being upperclassmen, should show leadership for the younger players.”
Wachutka said this game will provide insight for him regarding the players who just joined the team.
“We will learn some new things about the new players that aren’t as experienced to see if they can do what I think they can do,” Wachutka said.
Evenson said she has high hopes for this game and thinks it will serve as a starting point for the team and the rest of the season.
“This will be a tough competition, so if we start out well against this team, we will be good for the rest of the season,” Evenson said.
The varsity game will be held at 4:30 p.m. April 7 at Aquila Park.
