The softball team didn’t start the season off ideally. The majority of its games were cancelled because of bad weather. Fortunately, during May, no games were cancelled and New Trier showed that they can play with the big dogs. The Trevians finished the season with a record of 24-2. Junior pitcher Allison Quigley had 17 wins and alternate pitcher Lauren Secaras had four. The playoffs started on May 21.
The Trevians finished first in CSL South with a record of 10-0 against conference teams and finished with the fourth best record in the state. Due to the multiple game cancellations at the beginning of the season, the players had less time to get acquainted with each other, but that didn’t stop them from having a 24-win season.
“A lot of us have played together before and you could tell that we were all familiar with each other and loved playing together,” said junior third baseman Claire Grossman. The beginning of the season called for a lot of indoor practices and carb-fests. As the year progressed, the team clicked better which became apparent on the field.
“Over spring break, we had a four-day tournament in Normal, IL cancelled due to rain,” said head coach John Cadwell. “That trip would have given the team a chance to bond and create a sense of trust early into the season. It would have also allowed for us to play top teams in the state and we use those games to determine where we fit and where we can compete.”
Coming into this season, the team lost three All-Conference players: Brigit Iueter, Molly Morrison and Jackie Stern. “Not only were they key players on the field, they were leaders off the field,” said Cadwell. The softball team has a total of 17 players, eight of which are new to the team. The team has two new catchers “who have displayed confidence so far,” said Cadwell.
Cadwell was pleased with both the team’s success this season and the play by the eight seniors. “On the field, our captains and seniors are the ones we can look up to and talk to. Off the field, they would do anything for our team. They really look out for us,” said Grossman.
Hitting has been a constant from the Trevains. During the 26 games that the Trevains played, they scored a total of 198 runs while only giving up 53, and only 35 were earned runs.
“The main thing we want to stress is our aggressive play. We want to take an extra base whenever possible, challenge the defense. The girls need to be mindful of what their purpose is at the plate,” said Cadwell.
“We have a great defensive group and we really communicate when we are on the field. When we have solid defense, it gives us momentum and we turn that into solid offense,” said Secaras. New Trier committed only 30 errors over the course of the season.
Quigley is the number one pitcher and is proving it every start. She struck out 148 batters in 17 games. To finish the season, Quigley had an ERA of 0.50. On April 6, Secaras was named player of the game going 4-for-4 and pitching a complete game for her first win of the season against St. Charles.
“It felt great being named player of the game. It was a close game for a while but we broke open the scoring in the fourth inning when we scored eight runs. Winning a double header and keeping our perfect season alive was more important than me winning player of the game though,” said Secaras.
During that game, Grossman hit a homerun in the first for her first home run as a varsity player. In 26 games, New Trier hit 20 home runs and stole 62 bases in 66 attempts.
Offense is the main component driving the team. They don’t give up many runs, but if they did, the pitchers would have the confidence from their teammates that they will be able to come back from any deficit because of their ability to score.
“We have a very special group that is capable of great achievements. If we push in practice and demand their best when in the field and at no point let up during the season, we will be in a nice position when the season ends,” said Cadwell.
“Going into the playoffs, we need to minimize the mistakes we make on the field. As we go farther into the playoffs, the teams get better and those mistakes could cost us runs and maybe even games,” said Grossman.