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St. Luke's Varsity Softball: Season Preview
After completing the 2018 season with a perfect 15-0 record, the St. Luke’s Varsity Softball team is excited to defend its FAA and Western New England titles this year.
A number of key players from that squad graduated, and Troy Haynie stepped down as the head coach, so there will be a new look to the Storm this year. Elizabeth Joseph was promoted from assistant coach following Haynie’s departure, and she is excited to put her own stamp on the program: “I want the team to play with heart, passion, and integrity. I expect them to respect each other as well as their opponents, no matter what the score of the game. Sportsmanship is everything to me, and I am confident this group will bring that every day.”
The team battled some difficult conditions the first couple of weeks of preseason before traveling to Florida for warm-weather training. Joseph is thrilled with how things have gone so far: “Preseason has been full of strong and positive energy. We were as productive as we could be despite the winter weather in Connecticut. We were able to get a lot of hitting work and fielding basics done in the gym before heading to Florida. The trip is a great opportunity for our girls to get out on the field and practice, as well as to scrimmage against some good teams. The girls came out a lot stronger after spending the time together. It’s something our team always benefits from.”
The Storm is captained by Kendall Boege ‘19, Emma Cropper ‘19, Riley Page ‘19, and Maddy Sead ‘19, and the head coach expects the quartet to lead by example: “We are expecting a lot from our seniors and captains this season. They've all played on this team throughout their entire high school careers and grown into great players. We would love to see them have the success they've earned and deserve. We look to them to lead our team, on and off the field. We expect them to be inclusive and continue building on our unique family feeling.”
Mae Archie ‘22 and Grace Wearing ‘23 are two of the new faces and youngest members on the team, and Joseph has been extremely impressed with them.: “Mae has brought great energy and enthusiasm. She fits right into the family with ease. We are also excited to have Grace, our only eighth grader. She is a very talented athlete and will contribute a lot this spring.”
As for the team’s goals, Joseph concluded: “We want to defend our FAA championship and WNEPSA championship. We want to leave it all out on the field and give it our best shot. These girls have big shoes to fill, but I am confident they will rise to the occasion.”
St. Luke’s Varsity Softball kicks off the season with road trips to the Gunnery School on Saturday, April 6, and Cheshire Academy on Tuesday, April 9.
The team then has its home opener on the new Class of 2018 Softball field on Tuesday, April 16, against Holy Child School.
St. Luke’s School is a secular (non-religious), private school in New Canaan, CT for grades 5 through 12 serving over 35 towns in Connecticut and New York. Our exceptional academics and diverse co-educational community foster students’ intellectual and ethical development and prepare them for top colleges. St. Luke’s Center for Leadership builds the commitment to serve and the confidence to lead.
