LYNN — It’s no secret that one of the most important pieces to any winning team is a good group of leaders. Pair those leaders with talented and the rest tends to take care of itself. That, in short, has been the formula to another successful season for the Classical softball team.
A trio of Rams seniors, Maddie Dana (catcher), Rebecca Walker (shortstop) and Kayla Morrill (second base) have made up the heart of Classical’s infield and set the tone for the Rams.
“Those three have been the backbone of our program ever since they got here,” Rams coach Erika Richard said. “They first stepped in during their freshman year and you didn’t know they were freshmen. All three of them are the heart of our infield. We won the Northeastern Conference their sophomore year (2017) with them and we’re in contention for it this year.”
With the regular season winding down, Classical holds a 12-4 record and the Rams’ three co-captains are the first to tribute the success to a talented roster up and down the lineup, paired with positive chemistry.
“I think we have a lineup where anyone can contribute, one through nine,” Morrill said. “Anyone can hit the ball and field the ball. We don’t have to rely on two or three people for big hits. Everyone can contribute and has been a difference maker at some point for us this year.”
“A lot of us have been playing together for a while,” Dana said. “I think we just have really good chemistry on this team. We have a lot of young players that have come up big whenever we need them. We also have returners with experience that come up big. Anyone is willing to go at any time.”
With a good blend of experienced and younger players, Richard has relied on her co-captains to foster a winning atmosphere.
“They’re not just good players, they’re unbelievable kids,” Richard said. “They take the underclassmen under their wings. They’re the ones that get everybody going and that you rely on for all the little things during a long season.”
Among all the factors that go into leading a softball team, the Rams’ trio has put an emphasis on supporting one another throughout the season.
“Even when the underclassmen or anyone makes a mistake we have to make sure they’re staying up and don’t get in their own heads,” Walker said. “That matters a lot in this game. It’s not always okay to make mistakes but it’s always something you can come back from.”
“It’s definitely about keeping the energy up,” Dana said. “Some of these girls need that high energy to keep going. You still want to try to have fun even in some tough games and stay positive. Just knowing that we all have each other’s backs helps. We know every single one of us has each other’s backs. That plays a major role anytime we find ourselves down.”
All the pieces seem to be in place for the Rams to soon set their sights on their ultimate goal, making a state tournament run. Walker, Morrill and Dana hope to end their Classical softball careers on a positive note in the postseason.
“The three of us have been playing together since we were little,” Dana said. “I just really hope we make it further than we ever have before. (The state tournament) is always a big goal for us. Especially as seniors we want to go out giving it all in the tournament. We don’t want to go out without a fight. We want to battle to our last game.”
“As a team obviously we have to play well,” Morrill said. “You have to be consistent. It’s hard because you want to say that you have to be perfect but obviously you know that’s not going to always happen. You have to have confidence. We have to know that we can hit the ball when we need to, can make the plays and can throw the ball where it has to go. As long as we are all on the same page, we all have the chemistry and we’re all dialed in we can go very far.”
Classical has a busy week ahead with home games against crosstown rival English Wednesday (4) and Gloucester Thursday (3:30).