What better way to reminisce than to think about my most memorable game day experiences? Here are my five favorite game day memories:
5. My First College Start
My freshman year we opened up our season at the University of Arizona. The first game of the season was against Baylor University and immediately following we were scheduled to play Arizona. Any coach at any school will tell you that you always want to start your season off on the right note. So, of course, Bridget gave the start against Baylor to our ace, senior stud Lauren Quense. That left me with the Friday night light, season and home opener, against the #10 team in the country. It was being thrown in to the fire in the most amazing way possible. How many people get to have that cool of a first college start? The nostalgic vibes coming from the stadium of one of the best softball programs in history, hundreds of senior citizens (they had an older fan base) yelling at me from the sold out seats above, and the Arizona sun setting behind me. It still gives me goose bumps today.
4. My First A10 Championship
Most of my favorite game day memories are from tournament play. Post season is what we work for as soon as we step foot onto campus in August. And, more so my freshman year than any other in my life I had to grind to get a spot in our starting lineup. Our senior class that year is arguably the best class Fordham softball has ever had. Every single one of them were studs. We had pitching, we had power, we had speed, we had defense, and we had a veteran starting lineup(a recipe for success). By the time A10 tournament play had hit I was able to secure a starting spot in right field and the #9 spot in our batting lineup. On championship Sunday we were set to face off against our conference rival UMASS. We were undefeated in the tournament up to that point so UMASS would have had to have beaten us twice in order to advance to the NCAA Regionals. Long story short, a ball was hit to me and as I was running back for it it tipped off my glove and rolled to the fence. That is how they scored the runs to top us in game one. In game two we went into extra innings and I was able to come through for my teammates and get the game winning hit for my seniors. We weren’t that close of a team that year but the amount of love and true joy we had in each others company as we brought the hardware back home to the Bronx was a beautiful feeling and something that will always warm my heart when I think about it.
3. Our Win Over UMASS at A10s Last Year
There is not much to say other than it’s always sweet to beat your rival on their home turf. Both teams were sent to the elimination bracket and were facing off to keep our seasons alive. There was rain delay after rain delay and we never lost focus. We played our best softball of the year that game and it was the spark plug for the rest of our post season run last year. Everyone stepped up to the challenge and contributed to that victory. It was a true team win.
2. Quense’s Grand Salami
Anyone on field that would tell you this moment gives them chills whenever it comes up in conversation. It was championship Saturday and we needed one dub to bring home the hardware. Can you guess who we were playing? (If you guessed UMASS, you were correct) Lauren Quense comes up to bat with bases loaded and two outs. She hits an absolute BOMB over center field fence. Her last hit on the field she gave everything to was a dinger that ended up being the difference maker in our victory. It was poetic.
- Winning at Home
Winning is always fun. But winning the A10 Championship with your friends and family spread throughout the stadium cheering you on at your home field is something else. Going to Howl and celebrating with everyone you love and are thankful for is something I’ll cherish for the rest of my life. And, on top of that, we were the underdogs that year. Anyone would tell you that UMASS should have won. They went undefeated in conference and overall had better team stats than us. But that did not matter. We defeated the odds and came together to bring home the bling. This is easily the best memory I have on a softball field.
The Green Tea Chronicles 