Junior varsity softball scores blowout win 21-2 against Gunderson High School

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Nicole Chen

Freshman Taylor Lam pitched the entire junior varsity game today. The team scored 21 runs and held Gunderson High to 2 runs.

by Aneesha Kumar, Reporter

The upper school softball team remains undefeated with their commanding 21-2 win over Gunderson High School. This game was a junior varsity game, so seniors were not permitted to play.

The eagles started off strong by scoring five runs in the first inning and certain players had standout performances within the team.

“Taylor Lam, freshman pitcher, we were gonna have her rotate with Kristin LeBlanc, but we said let’s just see how long Taylor can go,” head coach Raul Rios said. “She went the whole way, held her own, and the defense helped her out in the background and they were able to produce a lot of runs for her.”

Many athletes implemented various skills in the game that they had been working on during practices.

“I had been practicing going lefty and slapping, so I did that this game and it was really cool,” third base and pitcher, Kristin LeBlanc (10) said.

When a softball player goes “lefty” that refers to batting on their left hand, and “slapping” is another term for bunting the softball, which means hitting the ball short. This skill is generally done best by left-handed players.

Since this was a JV game, all players, regardless of experience, received more playing time than usual.

Freshman Anika Rajamani swings the ball at an incoming ball. The team scored 21 runs and held Gunderson High to 2 runs.
Nicole Chen
Freshman Anika Rajamani swings the ball at an incoming ball. The team scored 21 runs and held Gunderson High to 2 runs.

“We had a lot of new players, so we gave them a lot of opportunities. We just wanted everybody to have fun, get involved, get their feet in the game, and get their confidence level up,” Rios said.

The eagles feel strong and prepared for their next match after this victory.

“We have a very strong team this year with the defense and offense, and even the beginners who are starting out this year are doing very well and played a great game,” said Taylor Lam (9), who pitched this game.

The softball team’s first league game is tomorrow at 4 p.m. against The King’s Academy.