Saint Joseph’s Catholic Academy makes program history by playing its first-ever softball game

Although Saint Joseph’s Catholic Academy softball suffered a 19-4 defeat at Bishop McCort on Monday, the program still had plenty to celebrate as it played its first-ever softball game in school history.

Despite the season being canceled last year, Saint Joe’s players stayed focused on preparing for this upcoming season. The WolfPack have been training hard in the offseason, and head coach Bill Meyers knows that success doesn’t just jump right out of the gate. His team is ready for the process.

“It was exciting to have a lot of firsts for the program,” Myers said. “We also are really focusing on the process of becoming the team we want to be.”

The WolfPack started the game as efficiently as they could have hoped for, compiling two first-inning runs. They surrendered a run to the Crushers in the bottom of the first, but added an additional run in the top of the third to regain their two-run lead.

That’s when things went downhill for Saint Joseph’s, as it gave up 14 runs in the bottom of the frame, giving the Crushers a 15-3 lead. Although the WolfPack were able to drive in a run in the fourth inning, they couldn’t keep Bishop McCort off the scoreboard, as the Crushers scored an additional four runs and wound up winning the game 19-4.

Despite an overall rough first game, WolfPack starting pitcher Lizzie Weller showed flashes of brilliance in the first two innings and really limited the Crushers’ explosive offense for as long as she could. The freshman, like her coach, believes the program is building something special and that it won’t just come overnight.

“It was a tough, but good, first game,” Weller said. “For many of us never being on a field, we were able to put up a good fight. We’ve got some things to work on, and we’re here for the long run.”

At times throughout the game, Saint Joseph’s offense looked completely in sync, which is impressive considering it’s the first time it was able to step on the field and play together.

Junior second baseman Grace Rose was a bright spot for the WolfPack, as she notched two hits in three plate appearances and scored once. But Rose was just happy that she got the opportunity to compete on a softball field.

“It was really exciting to get back on a softball field and getting the first two hits of my varsity career,” Rose said. “Our team looked really good for the first two innings, and I’m proud of how hard we fought. I am looking forward to the rest of our season; the future of WolfPack softball is looking bright.”

While a 15-run loss doesn’t look good on paper, Myers said the box score doesn’t tell the whole story. There are no statistics to record the value of the experience his players gained just by getting to play a live game.

“We aren’t happy with the overall result, but we are really pleased that we started out real well and played real well into the bottom of the third,” he said. “I also was proud when things got out of hand that we continued to battle. The girls showed what kind of fighters they are. We all acknowledge that we have a long way to go, but the girls are committed to get there.”

Saint Joseph’s is set to play its first-ever home game on Monday, against nonconference foe Greenwood. The first pitch is set for 4:30 p.m.