Softball off to rocky start with weather and games
Madie Kessler Kira Phipps hold up their home run balls after a game.
April 26, 2022
Norwin Softball is off to a rocky start and the recent weather has not been in favor of a smooth season. They currently have a record of 2-3, their wins come to Butler, a big section opponent, and Latrobe. Their wins are credited to incredible pitching from Angelina Pepe and some strong bats. As the season continues, the Lady Knights hope to make a run into the playoffs and finish out the rest of their season strong.
The softball team worked hard to get ready for the season and this showed in their first section win, a 12-1 win against Butler and a fantastic start to their season. They have not been able to keep up the same momentum moving forward but they hope to get it back in their upcoming games.
“During the off season we worked extremely hard,” said senior pitcher Angelina Pepe. “We had a big win against Butler in our very first section game. As the season goes on I look forward to building stronger connections with my teammates and hopefully make the playoffs.”
The weather this spring has not been kind to the Softball team as many of the fields they play on are dirt which becomes unable to be played on in the rain. Many of their games have been postponed forcing them to play more and more games every week to fit all of their section games into the regular season.
“The weather has impacted us negatively,” said Pepe. “We haven’t been able to get most of our section games in due to the weather.”
Not only has the rainy spring season affected games, but the team has had limited outdoor practices. The weather has also forced the Lady Knights to play a majority of their games on the road.
“Weather has had a tremendous effect on this season,” said Coach Brian Mesich. “We have only played one game on our own field even though we have a turf infield. The rain and our outfield has limited our outside practices.”
As the season reaches its halfway point the Lady Knights are reevaluating how the season has progressed and are working to improve their record in hopes of making the playoffs.
The Lady Knights have only won 2 games after playing 7. Norwin defeated Latrobe by a score of 3-2 highlighted by home runs by Madie Kessler, who has had a few stellar hits this season so far, and Kira Phipps. Their other win was their first game of the season to a strong section opponent, Butler, defeating them 12-1. During this game, 3 balls were cranked over the fence by Josey Michalski, Mallory Wensel, and Angelina Pepe. Pepe also had a great day on the mound. The Lady Knights have also suffered a few tough losses to Hempfield (10-7), Pine Richland (6-2), and Seneca Valley (2-1).
“I think the rest of the season we will need to work really hard to make the playoffs, we are currently not making the playoffs but they could change,” said junior Madie Kessler. “I think now that we actually have a few games under our belt we will most definitely put everything together and achieve our full potential.”
In order to reach their full potential and make their playoff run they will need to clean up their game. With room to improve as a team still the Lady Knights will be working hard in practice.
“We have to play more of a sound defensive game,” said Mesich. “We are making to many errors or poor plays that create high run innings.”
With playoffs in reach for the second half of the season the Lady Knights will be on a mission in hopes to extend their season as long as possible.
“I am hoping to make it further than past years in playoffs this year,” said Pepe. “We all need to work as a team and we can achieve this.”
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