For most spring sports, the last week before spring break proved to be extremely competitive. During the final four days of school, girls’ soccer, softball, boys’ tennis, baseball, and track all faced our cross-town rivals, the Turlock Bulldogs.
On Tuesday—despite an intense match and a strong starter inning—the Pride lost by only a few runs to the Turlock Bulldogs. Two days later, our baseball team redeemed themselves by winning 9-2, with A.J. Derr as the unexpected closing pitcher. Tuesday’s loss could have been attributed to the competition—the Pride went up against the heavy hitter, Tyler Murphy.
Right after baseball finished, the girls’ Varsity soccer team played at the Joe Debley Stadium for their first night-game of the season. Although they had many attempted scores, the team fell short by one goal and tied with the Bulldogs for the second time. The 2-2 score created an even league record between both teams—one more obstacle they must overcome in order to take the league title for the second year in a row.
Tennis also played the Bulldogs on Tuesday, and defended their league champions title with pizzazz. Each player radiated pure confidence whilst squaring off against the Bulldogs and they were able to come away with a win of 7-2.
On Wednesday, the girls’ Varsity softball team entered a game previously predicted to be a “blow-out”. Prior to the game, Coach Sheppard, head coach of the Pride, talked to the girls and told them that, “On any given day, any team can win.” After this was said, the game lasted a full seven innings and ended with a score of 8-2. Contributing to the win was Sarah Ward, with her fist homerun of the season.
The next day, the team drove across town to play at Turlock. Following a pitching change, Lexi Mettler led her team to another win in five innings and the Pride settled the cross-town rivalry with a 10-0 score.
The swim team had a meet against the Bulldogs as well, and placed well in nearly all the events, which helped them take home an overall win. The day of the meet included lovely weather, which attracted more spectators to cheer and motivate the team than usual.
Track also competed against the Bulldogs, and went up against fierce competition. The meet was held at the Joe Debley stadium, and the participants pushed themselves to the very limit in each event. That being said, any spectator could see true talent emerge from both sides. Thus, the track meet resulted in a tie.
Not only did the Pride play its very best before taking a break, but the unexpected fluctuating scores added drama and intensity to our usual games. Not only were the wins gratifying, but it was also nice to leave on a positive note before spring break.