STARKVILLE — A 14-4 loss to Tupelo did not spoil senior night too much for the Starkville High School softball team on Tuesday night.
It was a tough loss to take on the occasion, but it didn’t dampen spirits too much for seniors Jada Lee and Destinee Madison, who reflected fondly on their time with the team and expressed confidence in their teammates and coach Brittany Tillery to keep improving the program.
“I feel really great,” Lee said. “And not like ‘just won a game’ great, but just being able to work with the girls every day, coming out here and bonding with the team, it’s just a blessing by itself.”
Tillery’s first year with the program, and Lee’s and Madison’s last, might not have produced a record to be proud of, but it has allowed them and their teammates to grow and learn the game in a positive environment that is expected to pay dividends going forward.
“It’s been fun,” Tillery said of working with the team. “Just seeing their faces when they hear something different, or they learn something new or make a big-time play that they’ve been practicing. Seeing their faces light up when those moments happen, that’s rewarding.
“I know the score and our record haven’t dictated how well they’ve played and how much they’ve improved, but I appreciate the fight and willingness to get better. I don’t have to yell or ask them to go the extra mile, they just do it.”
Work was going to have to be done to bring SHS softball back to a high competitive level, but Tillery has shown she has the commitment to make it happen. A Starkville native, Tillery told the Dispatch in 2021 of her desire to ignite something in this program, and it was clear on Tuesday night that she’s already seeing a change.
“Before I got this job, all you hear about is the negatives and you never hear about the positives in this program,” she said. “I walked into this situation, laid all my cards on the table and was transparent with them, and as I was transparent they opened up. I can pour into them, and they absorb it. They’re like sponges.
“Those young girls sit down and ask me questions, and there’s never been a moment where I’ve had to pull teeth to get them to try and understand the game. They want to understand the game; they want to get better.”
The seniors shared the view of their coach that something is happening with the young squad.
“I feel like they’re going to get better with or without us,” Lee said. “I’m kinda sad that I gotta leave ‘em here, but I have faith that they’ll be better than they were this year.”
Madison echoed that sentiment and took it a step further in her predictions for the future.
“I’m really happy with how our girls have played,” she said. “They’ve shown everyone they’re capable of fighting and getting better. I’m gonna come back and watch them, because I’m gonna miss them so much.
“We’ve been through so much together, and I feel like they’re gonna keep getting better. I feel like they’ve got a state championship in them in a couple of years.”
The Yellow Jackets will finish their season with a trip to Oxford on Thursday.
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