The New Softball Season

As spring sports have already gotten a few weeks of practice and games under their belt, Gallatin High gets a new season up and running with a goal to break records and add to the trophy case. The softball team in particular has been working hard to improve in past years as a new coach, Michael Coleman , incoming freshman, and older players start to build Gallatin’s foundation for the team. Senior Rihanna Ashcraft, the only senior on the team, was interviewed and said, “I’m excited to see how the program and team progresses even when I’m gone.” Ashcraft also commented on how softball is a good outlet and makes an environment of teammates who “push her to do better.”

Sports are a common place for students to put energy into, but can also be a struggle when students are faced with managing their school work load on top of practicing every day with meets or games on weekends. Ashcraft mentioned that the media often portrays being a student athlete to be easy and not hard work, however, the reality is that not many students thrive academically when their sport is in season. Having already two years of experience at the high school level, Ashcraft says, “It takes more of a drive. You need to willingly want to do both things.” She also raised the point claiming leaning on your teammates for support and having the possibility of a study hall, instead of a practice, is very beneficial for managing work loads.

However, softball can also bring many skills to athletes such as critical thinking, time management, and accountability. As Ashcraft said, “Softball is a sport of failure. Professional athletes have a batting average of .4 or .3 which is hitting three balls out of ten,” showing how many losses players need to go through in this sport. This in turn, gives athletes the skill of resilience, being able to bounce back from failures and keep going. Some great advice Ashcraft gives players is “messing up is not the end of the world, you can win and you can lose but it doesn’t mean anything if you don’t learn from it.” Being able to set goals and have motivation to reach them and go even further is a key way to better yourself and your performance; bonus points for doing the same for your teammates.

Make sure to show out to games to support our Raptor softball team. Having a crowd and being loud makes a huge difference in the energy of the players, so fill the stands and intimidate the opposing team while encouraging ours to play their best. Softball games can change their schedule frequently due to weather and other factors so make sure you ask the players when the next game is. @ghs_studentsection.2022 on Instagram posts updates and dates of all of Gallatin sporting events and is a great way to stay informed. Show up, get loud, and give our players the support they deserve.