By By Matthew Nascone
Two years ago the Northview High School Lady Chiefs softball team won the FHSAA Class 3A, District 1 tournament on their home diamond. NHS head coach Stephanie Elowsky said she wants that success plus a little more this season.
But Elowsky said if one key element is missing from a winning team, then it is just another team that wins games.
This year’s Lady Chiefs have something Elowsky said she has not seen in the years she has been at Northview. And it is something you can’t coach or teach.
These girls have also ate, slept and breathed softball together.
The senior leadership for the 2008 team will come from Caitlin Spence, Kirsten Robinson, Olivia Godwin and Kasey Baggett, but there will also be leadership coming from elsewhere.
The varsity squad will have the freshman and sophomore class represented well, with four freshmen and three sophomores on the 13-player team.
This explosion of youth has put Elowsky and assistant coach Sammy Day in a pretty tough position.
But Elowsky said she does not see this as a problem.
Elowsky said the new players have brought a surge of power on offense and will also be solid on defense.
Helping Elowsky and Day will be two managers. Mallory Bell and Brook Schlobohm will assist the coaches and be the first ever managers for the NHS softball team.
Elowsky said there will be one key to how the season ends.
The Lady Chiefs will begin earning those runs and outs Tuesday on the road against Washington. The team’s opening home game will be Feb. 12 against West Florida Tech.