Student Express

Swinging for the fences

With only a few games left of their regular season, the girls' varsity softball team has had a tremendous season so far. As of May 11, the varsity team had a winning record of 10-2 with both of their losses coming from Danville.

With five seniors on the team, Alyssa Fisher, Riley House, Jessalyn Myers, Maggie Saar, Alexis Strouse, and countless underclassmen who play travel ball, this year's team has a tremendously experienced group of players leading the game. One senior who has had a huge impact on the team is Riley Houser. Following her graduation this spring, Houser will be attending Keystone College. There, she will be playing softball while dual majoring in criminal justice and psychology.

Another senior who has made a lasting impact of the Wildcat team is Alexis Strouse. Unlike Houser, Strouse will be focusing solely on her academics when she attends Penn State University main campus to study architecture.

Last year, the girls lost their junior season due to the Coronavirus Pandemic. One thing that Houser missed about not being able to play last year was "not being able to be active and connect with the underclassmen." Meanwhile, Strouse missed "getting more experience with my teammates and getting to see what the other teams were like." Moving forward in the season, Strouse has some high expectations for how the remaining games will go. "We are definitely going to have a winning season and hopefully win districts. The ultimate goal is to win states."

Much like Strouse, Houser believes the team can do exceptionally well. She would like her team to "keep the winning streak going and bring home another district title." Having played many years of softball on numerous school and travel ball teams, both girls have had plenty of memories and moments that they will forever cherish. From her three years of playing softball for the Wildcats, Houser says her favorite memory was "playing at Penn State Stadium for the State Title." Strouse's favorite memory from her years as a Wildcat would be "the bus rides home after a good win with some karaoke."

Being a senior comes with many responsibilities. One of those responsibilities is to take the new underclassmen under your wing and watch out for them. You have to teach them what it is like to play on a high school softball team and help make their experience the best one it can be. Both Houser and Strouse have a message they would like to share with any underclassmen playing softball.

Houser wants underclassmen to know that "hard work pays off. Make memories while you can, it will go by in the blink of an eye." Something Strouse would like to share with the underclassmen would be "don't let a bad game or bad at bat get to you. Move on with confidence."

After the completion of their regular season, the girls will continue on to play in the district tournament with hopes of going on to the state tournament.