The varsity softball team started practicing about a month ago.

The team has their first game this week and they have been working really hard to get ready to start their season off to a good start.

Savanna Wallace, a senior at Dimond, plays outfield and has been playing softball since her sophomore year.

Wallace had never played softball before but was a complete natural when she started.

She started on junior varsity and by the end of the season she was swinging up for varsity games.

Wallace said, “ I never knew how much I would enjoy playing softball, and I wish I would have started playing the sport when I was younger.”

Hailey Daugherty, a senior at Dimond, plays first base and is the captain of the varsity team.

She has been playing softball since third grade for Dimond West Little League, and has played on varsity all four years of high school.

The varsity team has their first game on friday against Chugiak and they are very excited.

Daugherty said, “ We haven’t had a game yet, but I’m excited to see where we go as a team as the season progresses.”

She said, “Since we only had one senior last year, our team has stayed relatively intact from last year. I do think we have an advantage over other teams because we have been playing together for awhile now, so I think we have a better understanding of our teammates.”

Wallace said, “We have a lot more seniors on the team this year which makes the underclassmen look up to us as leaders and it has really helped the team come together as a whole.”

They are working hard on their skills to prepare for the game.

Daugherty said, “As a team we have been focusing more on fundamentals to prepare for the season. It is important to have a strong skill base so there is more consistency and confidence as we enter and carry throughout the season.”

Wallace said, “ We are working on just getting better as a team and making sure we all play good together, we have also been practicing pitching a lot.”

Although there are a lot of great teams this year, the varsity team believes they will be the biggest competition in the conference.

Wallace said, “ I am pretty confident our team is going to be really good this year, a lot of the good teams from last year has lost a lot of key players making us be a lot better.”

Daugherty said, “There are really great programs in our conference, and they all oppose high levels of competition. However, collectively our team is a more experienced than most teams in the conference, and I think that can greatly work in our favor. If we cultivate the immense experience and overwhelming skill of our team, I do believe that we will be the biggest competition this year.”

A lot of the seniors on the team are feeling bittersweet about this being their last season they get to play in high school.

Wallace said, “ I am sad that this will be the last year playing with this team but I’m excited for the future teams I will get to play on in college.”

Daugherty said, “ I am so excited to play, but it is sad to think that it will all be soon coming to an end. So I want to make it the best season I can. I am lucky to be part of such a talented team, and I know we can achieve great success this season.”