Softball Takes Another Swing

Softball can be a very challenging and difficult sport most of the time. The sport consists of making solid contact, catching a ball, and running. But there is a lot more than meets the eye, one example is good chemistry and good teamwork. 

Junior Mariah Castaneda says she is excited to play with the new freshman players. Castaneda plays shortstop, and outfield and has enjoyed the game since the beginning of when she started at the age of nine years old. A goal Castaneda has is to succeed and accomplish is to keep a really good connection between the team, and to have some fun this season. As the team would need to carry that team communication to their rival Independence. A big challenge Castaneda expects to see this season is the difficulty level of other schools that the team will be competing with this season. Castaneda believes the mental aspect of the sport is, “to stay focused on the game and not to get in your heads”. 

Ava Torrez, Junior and utility player at Ridgeview is excited for the team and season saying she is excited about this season because they will come out stronger, harder to face, and will get further in playoffs than last year. A big goal Torrez has set for herself this year is to “get better hits, and get faster this year.” Torrez, though feel’s ready for this season and is excited to play this year.

Angelina Torrez, another utility player and Junior at Ridgeview, has a challenge and goal of getting more outs on defense as well as more hits on offense. A tough opponent that Torrez believes will be a challenge to overcome is Bakersfield Christian High School due to their fiery offense being able to hit the ball really well. Torrez says the toughest thing in softball is, “When you get in your head too much”.

 Head coach of the girls’ wolfpack Softball team Deb Whitbey, is really excited for the incoming freshman, and her returners from last year’s varsity team. Although she is more excited to see the new incoming talent for this upcoming season. Coach says, “The girls and coaches are ready. We always get a little sad at the end of each season and after we all had a month or two away from it, we are ready to get back into the swing of things. We have a new league, a different schedule, so we are excited”. A big wall for the team would be Independence and Bakersfield Christian due to the well-rounded team in hitting, pitching, and fielding. Whitbey started teaching and her coaching career at Ridgeview in 1997 and plans to end her career at Ridgeview. Whitbey believes the game is 50 percent mental and 50 percent physical, but you must be able to focus on the game. Whitbey adds on, “We can have talented players on the field and then one little mental hiccup can make them forget things they already know and do so well. So we like to focus on our mental health as well as the basic skills of softball”.