DECRUZ POLIKOTTIL | staff writer
APU’s softball team isn’t just meeting expectations from their preseason. To everyone’s surprise but their coach’s, they seem to be exceeding them.
With new coach Carrie Webber and fi ve of their seniors departing last year, the Cougars weren’t projected to be doing as well as they are right now. A win-loss record of 19-20 and 9-7 in conference puts them near the top of the GSAC standings and in position to make a run for post-season play.
While this surge in play has been unexpected, senior shortstop Bethany Weisser said a different attitude was expected this season.
“Coming in we knew we had a good group of girls and that this was going to be a different experience because we had a new coach,” Weisser said. “I think we expected Coach Webber to bring something new.” As the only senior on a young team, Weisser said she is excited to be on a team that is playing at this level. The theme for this year’s team seems to be “playing up to our ability.” The Cougars began the year with wins in Oregon but then struggled with losses at Cal State San Marcos and Cal State Dominguez Hills.
“It started out really rocky. We did really good in the beginning, then we were up and down and really inconsistent,” Weisser said. “Now we’ve reached a level where we come out hard every game and we’re playing more consistently.” Key matchups at Vanguard, where the Cougars split a doubleheader, and a sweep of Biola have turned the season around. Things were not always so bright, however. Webber said that she came in with few expectations because she was new to her coaching position. “I went into it with a new slate. Figuring out what kind of program we wanted to build here and what I wanted to build here and just taking the girls that were here and making that happen,” Webber said. “The fi rst few weeks were diffi cult because it took us a while to adjust to each other and to buy into each other’s ideals and styles and programs.”
Despite the initial hiccups, the Cougars seem to have overcome any doubt they had in themselves or in their teammates. “The girls have adapted so well,” Webber said. “They have actually met and exceeded whatever expectations I had coming into this year.”
The major consensus on the team is that the corner has been turned. Placing the credit for the resurgence in the team’s play is tough for the coach, as she believes that everyone has tuned in and is now playing a different sort of game.
“I think that everyone has stepped up to the point where I don’t think they are necessarily surprising me but they are surprising themselves,” Webber said. “It has really translated into more of a confi dence booster than anything else.”
Every game to fi nish out the season is seen as a must-win situation but Webber said that she is happy so far with the direction the team has gone. She is so happy in fact, that she would be satisfi ed if the season were to end today. “Absolutely, one hundred percent,” Webber said. “I would die a happy person.” The Cougars aren’t planning on ending the season any time soon though, as there is still a lot of softball to be played. Every game from here on out will be played with a high level of intensity.
It’s all due to a new found energy and faith in themselves, which doesn’t look to be dimming any time soon. “We told them the expectations that the coaching staff had at the beginning of the year, and I’m not sure they believed us,” Webber said. “Now they believe.”
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