Sarah Miller throws the softball to first base during practice
Photo by Anna Mills

A quote stands out on the EWU fastpitch club website, “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”

This quote alone shows what the fastpitch club is all about. According to their club information, the goal for the team is to maintain its status as one of the most competitive softball teams in the Pacific Northwest.

The Eagles’ season schedule for the 2012-2013 season consists of 10-15 games during the fall season and 25-30 games during spring. They compete against other collegiate club teams.

The club is currently practicing at Salnave Elementary School from 8 to 10 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. So far, the team has been playing their home games mainly at Salnave Elementary.

According to senior catcher Breann Booher, the team has done well so far this season. “Our season’s going very well. We’ve had very good success,” Booher said.

“So far [the season] has gone great. We [have] a lot of returners, a lot of girls who’ve been on the team for quite a while,” third base senior Amanda Charron said.

“We also have a lot of new girls, and we’ve all come together really well. We’ve won some [games]. We’ve lost some [games]. But overall, we usually come out of the losses pretty well,” Charron said.

Recently, the club was awarded a challenge coin, a military medal from a United States Air Force veteran. The team received the award while they were playing Highline Community College in Des Moines, Wash., on March 24. The award was given to the Eagles because of their professionalism and positive representation of their school.

One challenge that the Eagles went through this year was dealing with the number of players on the team. They had a hard time keeping enough players on the team. The club had a difficult time trying to fill in reserves for the starters. “We’ve had some new girls come on and off, but right now we’re at an OK number,” Charron said.

Another challenge was dealing with the early absence of their coach. “We had a coach coming into the season, and she had to resign after the end of fall quarter due to family situations,” Booher said.

The team played a doubleheader on April 6 against the University of Idaho. The Eagles lost the first game 4-5. However, they managed to bounce back with a 14-3 win in the second game.

The club also played another doubleheader against Boise State University. The team lost the first game 10-
14. After that loss, they managed to get a 10-8 victory against Boise State. The Eagles played again on April 14 where they fell to Boise State 4-6.

According to Booher, there is a different approach when working hard in a club sport. “Being in a club sport it’s hard to be motivated. But I feel like each of the girls on our team has a certain drive and passion for the sport,” Booher said.

Booher feels that it is also the chemistry that makes the club work hard. “We’re really a very tight-knit bunch, and I think that’s what helps us out the most is the camaraderie of the team,” Booher said.

During practice the team does a lot of repetition as far as making specific plays. Also, the team’s practice consists of doing grounders and taking fly balls. During practice, the team usually separates between infield and outfield.

According to Charron, lately the club has been working on a lot of fundamentals such as field work and batting. Overall, the team seems to have great chemistry so far. “Just coming to practice with these girls just makes my day that much better,” Booher said.