Sports Brief: Softball player signs for cross-country

Senior Jordan Saliba, a softball player for the Lady Panthers, signed with Freed-Hardeman University of Henderson, TN. However, contrary to her current athletic position, Saliba will not play softball for the Freed-Hardeman Lions.

“Freed-Hardeman doesn’t have softball,” senior Carly Williamson said. “So Jordan is signing on for cross-country.”

Present at the college signing were softball coach Katie Maroon, girls’ cross-country coaches Steve Sullivan and Catherine Jones, and assistant principal Ken Demetriou, along with girls from both the softball and cross-country teams.

Softball prepares for district

Compared to last year, the softball girls feel that this season is so far, so good. With a 5-3-district record, the girls realize that they have a chance to reach their team goal.

“Our team goal is to make it all the way to state because we know that we have the potential,” senior catcher Brittany Barber said. “We might not have the support that baseball and football has; however, we do have determination.”

For years, the girls have always come in second place to baseball. Because of this, the girls also feel they are not respected by their peers.

“We realize that softball is not a respected sport at Bartlett because people do not think that we will get far,” junior pitcher Katie Locke said. “This alone is helping us stay determined. We will show the school how far we can go.”

Although they have not won every game, they are working overtime to beat any and every team that they play this season.

“I don’t see any team being a challenge for us this year,” Barber said. “Our team has a unique bond this year, and we will dominate.”

The team is also convinced that they are good enough to go all the way to State.

“I know that we will make it to State this year because we have a very good team,” Barber said. “We also have the best coaches that a team could ask for, so how could we lose?”

Being a former softball player herself, it is no surprise that head coach Katy Maroon would have such an effect on the team.

“Coach Maroon does a lot to keep us motivated,” senior second baseman Jessica Lynch said. “She is very passionate about coaching us girls.”

According to Assistant Coach Ken Demetriou, Maroon has great knowledge of the game and she cares about her players.

“She has been coaching for eight years and she played college softball, so she has a lot of experience,” Demetriou said. “This helps her to relate to the team better and coach them so well.”

Unlike most teams, the softball team does not have captains responsible for helping the coach to lead the team. Instead, everyone works together to achieve their number one goal.

“Having a captain is very unnecessary because that would just open the door to more drama, which is something that would only stand in our way of winning. ” Barber said.

At this point, the girls have begun their season with the end in mind. In fact, they are already preparing themselves for the district games.

“It’s my senior year and I am determined to go all of the way,” Barber said. “There are actually a lot of seniors on the team, and all of them feel the same way that I do. We will not stop until we get to the top.”