By Brian Lentz
Special to The Dispatch
Courage. Loyalty. Fight. Dedication.
If you take a look inside the New Hope softball dugout, you will find these words and several more hanging up above each player’s respective shelf. All of which can be used to describe the Lady Trojans this season.
“One of the best ways to describe this season is our dedication,” said freshman Brittani Beard. “We had players that went down, but we learned how to push through it and fight our way into the playoffs.”
Despite dropping out of the playoffs with a 13-0 loss to Neshoba Central on Saturday, spirits were still high after the game, as the players and head coach Tabitha Beard closed the books on this season and looked forward to what’s ahead.
Neshoba Central clinched the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 5A series two games to none, thanks also to an 11-0 win Friday night in Philadelphia.
“We’re out there playing with freshmen and sophomores,” said coach Beard. “Yet, we’re in a game against a great Neshoba Central team and we only give up six hits and one earned run with a bunch of underclassmen. We know what we have to work on, but at the same time, you also have to be excited about the future.”
There is indeed a lot for the Lady Trojans to look forward to in the coming years. New Hope ended the year with no seniors on the roster, instead relying on underclassmen and eighth graders even more after four starters suffered injuries. Despite all this, the Lady Trojans still advanced far enough into the playoffs to have a chance to play for the Class 5A North Half Championship.
“People had a lot of doubt in us this season,” said sophomore Kelsey Gerhart. “Considering the amount of JV players that had to step up and play after all of the injuries, we still won district. For that, I am pretty proud of the way the season went.”
Even in the loss, the Lady Trojans showed some signs of life. Neshoba Central was held scoreless in the top of the fourth and only managed one earned run throughout the entire game. Still, errors plagued New Hope and Beard believes that there are lessons to be learned before next season.
“We have to work defensively,” said coach Beard. “We have to play ball, we have to play it a lot, and we have to become great defenders. When that happens, we will be fighting in close ballgames until the end. Defense is what is going to pull it all together.”
Overall, the season can be remembered as one of adversity and overcoming for the Lady Trojans, and even after a disappointing end in the postseason, the words above each player’s shelf still ring true in regards to the season.
“We’re fighters,” said coach Beard. “You think about where we came from and how we started the season, and then see all the injuries and players going down one by one. Then we have our backs to the wall, having to beat a team by three runs that had beaten us earlier in the year, and Brittani pitches a one-hitter and we win 7-0. Everyday was a struggle to stay positive, but the players answered the call and no matter what I asked them to do, they did it. That’s all a coach can ask for.”
n Class 1A Playoffs: Hamilton advanced in the MHSAA Class 1A playoffs with a 10-5 win over Pine Grove Saturday.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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