After holding Waconia to one run for a majority of the game May 6, Park softball ultimately lost 2-4. 

According to coach Chris Gabler, the team played hard, but could have won if it stayed more focused. 

“It’s one we let slip away. They made a few more plays than we did. Our mistakes hurt us, but we battled and we competed,” Gabler said. 

Freshman Rowan Jansen said the team had to adjust to a lack of players at the game by switching up their positioning on the field. 

“We’re missing a lot of people so it was nerve wracking because some people weren’t playing where they normally are,” Jansen said. 

Even the smallest mistake can send the team in the wrong direction, according to junior captain Kamryn Halley. 

“It’s just the little things. We need to stay focused throughout the entire thing and really keep communicating because when we slip up on the tiniest thing, that’s what costs us four runs,” Halley said.

According to Jansen, another contributor to the team’s poor performance was a shorter warm-up time than usual. 

“We got here late, so we were only able to get 45 minutes of warm up,” Jansen said. “So it was really all mental.”

Halley said the team had to bring energy to the field to make up for their late arrival. But, while Park held a close score it couldn’t catch up to Waconia’s plays. 

“We all just had to hype each other up and be confident going in. Gabby, our starting pitcher, pitched great. We kept it 0-1 for a long time,” Halley said. 

According to Gabler, the team needs to work on technical skills and believing in themselves overall. 

“[We need a] better approach at the plate, we took too many call-three strikes. We have to tell ourselves ‘it’s okay to be good’,” Gabler said. 

Park will compete at 7:30 p.m. May 13 at Aspen Park against Coon Rapids.