By Luke Mich, Sports Editor
Over the past few weeks, Saint Vincent College has hosted multiple sporting events on the outdoor fields—events which include the beginning of the Bearcats softball team’s regular season. So far, the team’s campaign has started off swinging.
“We opened the season in good fashion by sweeping our double-header against Penn State Greater Allegheny. We’re excited to get into the season,” infielder Mary Maceda, senior engineering major, said.
After winning their first two games , the team did not play again until twelve days later, on Mar. 17, against Penn State Fayette. Like the previous series, Saint Vincent won both games with scores of 9-1 and 5-0. Next, they swept a two-game series against La Roche on Mar. 19, giving the team a 6-0 record.
“Everyone is excited. Team morale is great, and our team lifts each other up well,” Maceda said.
Not far removed from their last PAC title in 2019, the team’s goal is to make it to the conference championship game and win back the trophy. For some players, it would be their second championship, including Maceda.
“As a team, we want to get back to (the) playoffs, and it would be awesome to win PACs because for the seniors, [they] will have won twice since [they] won our freshman year.”
The Bearcats will play non-conference games until a two-game series at Grove City on Apr. 2. After that, all matchups will be conference games.
Yet, games are not the only events that players are looking forward to. Other events that will occur this spring, such as Senior Night, are generating excitement.
“I am looking forward to Senior Night. It’s one of those milestones where you really feel like you’ve accomplished something,” Maceda said. “Four years of training and playing is a lot of time, effort and discipline, and the culmination of it all is definitely something to be proud of.”
With games occurring at a much faster rate, with as many as eight games in eight days at some points, the season will get chaotic. Maceda, however, believes that if the team helps each other out, then the whole squad will experience success this season.
“Our team is incredibly talented, so as long as we can continue to lift each other up and have each other’s back, our season should be successful,” Maceda said.
The Saint Vincent softball team’s next home game is a doubleheader against Pitt-Greensburg on Wednesday, Mar. 23. The first game starts at 3 p.m.