South East High School Softball on the rise

As the CIF Division III champions last season, the lady Jaguars kick off their season as they were moved up to Division II. With the momentum the softball team has from last year’s win, the team has the possibility to make it back to back championships.

Elissa Rodriguez, a junior in Tech & Media magnet, said that because they moved up a division, their season has been rocky because they’re playing competitive teams during tournaments.

“We would really want to [take it all]; two rings are pretty cool but Division II brings on harder teams,” she said. She doesn’t expect a championship, but she does expect them to go to playoffs again.

The team’s biggest challenge is the fact that they are playing more advanced teams. They’ve notice how other teams know how to hit any ball thrown at them and that really messes with the team’s mentality.

Rodriguez believes that all it takes is for them to get out of that mindset to keep going. The girls have a very strong support system because their coaches push the players a lot. Rodriguez said their three coaches give them a lot of advice from never giving up and to keep on striving throughout the game pitch after pitch.

Briana Angulo, a junior in the Justice, Law and Service small school, agrees with Rodriguez. She also said the way they practice can help the way they play when they’re out on the field.

“When it actually comes to the games, it’s [their] energy, [their] determination, and for the most part, it’s the hope [they have in [themselves] and each other that carry the team throughout the game,” said Angulo.

Both Rodriguez and Angulo can agree that one of the team’s strengths is definitely their strong bond.

“Season made [them] teammates but time made [them] family,” said Angulo. The girls know exactly what they want, so they work on getting everyone on the same mindset. Both mentioned how their defense is really strong so that helps them during their games.

The softball team understands that they need to have the winning mentality in order to have yet another great season.

“We need to remember why we fell in love with the sport in the first place,” said Angulo.