As this current school year progresses, we begin saying ‘goodbye’ to winter sports and ‘hello’ to spring sports. This brings us an abundance of variety, which for the most part, takes place in the beautiful frequent Pacific Northwest gloomy days. However, if you are a sports fan, the rain does not affect your excitement for the sports season to come.
Golf this season is expected to finish strong.
“The key for us is not to rest on our laurels and [to] maintain our momentum throughout the spring,” head coach Dave Fiorino said.
The men’s team finished strong in the fall season with first place in the Northwest Conference Tournament.
“There is a lot of good energy and excitement to continue our winning ways,” senior Nick Kelly (Denver, Colo.) said.
The women’s golf roster is younger this season than it was in the past.
“This spring we have seven players (three of them new to the team) with varying degrees of experience and skill. They are all anxious to work hard on improving the mental and physical aspects of their games so they can successfully compete in conference play,” Coach Fiorino said.
Tennis, this season, should bring us some wins, after a showcase of talent earlier this season. “Everybody is really focused and there is a lot more intensity…we have such a nice team and everybody has a lot of potential.” freshman Josie Dow (Seattle, Wash.) said. Their first match will be Feb. 15 against Pacific Lutheran University.
Lacrosse this season is expected to improve on their 6-6 record from last year, with a roster that consists of six freshman players.
“I want to get to know the team and play a game that is cohesive with all the other players,” freshman Baylee McIntyre (Douglas, Wyo.) said.
Crew is a sport that requires dedication and determination, and during the off-season between fall and spring the team has been working hard every morning. “Every one on the team needs to be “All In” for us to succeed, and I strongly believe everyone is in that mindset,” senior Conor Lynch (Rye, N.Y.) said.
“Crew is a team sport unlike any I have ever been a part of before joining this fall. Every man in the boat needs to be on the same wavelength in order to succeed.” Marsa Daniel, the head coach of the crew team feels that the team’s ambition and determination will help the team finish strong this season.
“This is a driven team, not to mention a fun, spirited, and cohesive group — these things add up to strong performances and a rewarding experience,” Daniel said.
The crew season also demands early morning hours beginning at 4:30 a.m. and the team takes advantage of this bonding time.
“I have to imagine they’ve also been banking on a few hours of sleep!” As a rower, and rowing coach, you cherish every single day of sleeping past 5 a.m.,” Daniel said.
Even though the track had been covered in snow, you could still see the track and field team working hard at the beginning of the semester. This year, the team is looking to bring more people to conference.
“We have a really good group of people, a lot eager new freshman and a lot of returning athletes that really want to make an impact this year. Last year, a lot of injuries happened but we’re ready to move on from that,” sophomore Sean Tyree (Minneapolis, Minnesota) said.
Both baseball and softball should also be looked on with respect and expectation as they work hard to prepare for the upcoming season.
“We work to improve every individual’s batting average so we’ll continue to work on that,” Head Coach Jennifer Peterson said. In preparation for the season, the players should have, “better play approach [and] understand the game better as a hitter so [the hitters] have more tools to be decisive at the plate. You should see a bit of a break out in our offense. We’ve got a lot of the pieces to the puzzle in place,” Peterson said.
The baseball team finished quite strong last year and is looking to improve their record.
“I think I can speak for the whole team when I say that this year 2nd place won’t be enough for us,” senior Casey Coberly (Boise, Idaho) said.
“We don’t want to psyche ourselves out, but we know we can be a pretty darn good team this year. If we get nationally ranked at some point this year that will be gravy on top, but that is not what we are focusing on, our goal is to win conference and we are putting all of our efforts into that goal.” Coberly said.
Last year, the team went 17-17 overall and 15-9 in conference, finishing second overall.
“We are a very good hitting team and are looking to improve on the numbers from last year (which I think we will have no problem doing). We are very deep this year and have great pitching coming back as well,” Coberly said.
The baseball roster this year consists of 34 players, 8 being seniors. “Obviously the 8 seniors are looking forward to this season, it being our last, and the camaraderie on the team is as high as ever,” Coberly said. “I think that the experience and youth provide a perfect mix for the team this year and will help us a lot come crunch time. I am extremely excited and truly blessed to play with such a great and talented group of guys for my final year of collegiate athletics.” The first home game will be Feb. 17 against Concordia.
The winter sports season is still occuring. Logger fans should continue to support their team as the seasons begin to conclude and look to the spring with anticipation.
PHOTO COURTESY/DAVID PENDLETON
