While many students are headed home to celebrate the week off of classes, the baseball and softball players are headed to sunny Florida. Both teams leave this weekend and will return to New York early on Easter weekend.
Due to the weather conditions, the softball team has yet to play their first game in the new conference. Both teams have been practicing in the gym because the fields are covered in snow.
“[Going to Florida] is a chance for us to improve, to get out of the snow, to play consistently, and to play better. I think we are already playing better now than we did last year. But we need to continue to improve,” said baseball coach Brian Reitnour. “I think one of the things that Florida does for us is it gives us an opportunity to get outside because it is very difficult now to see fly balls and live pitching every day.”
“Our games have been cancelled, so it will be nice to get them out on the dirt, on real grass. It will be good for them to see the game because for half of them it is their first time playing in a collegiate game,” said softball coach Jeremy Shepherd. “We are just looking forward to them getting those first couple games under their belts.”
The schedule looks considerably different for both teams this year. Due to the new conference, the baseball and softball teams will be playing other teams recognized by NCAA division III.
“We are playing some really difficult teams. Our last day of spring break we finish with Luther who is ranked third in the country…so that will be a test,” said Shepherd. “And right when we get back we get Ithaca on that Saturday and right now they are ranked 15th in the country.”
“I think we will be better this year than last year now that we have experienced playing with each other,” said senior Jacob Kocher. “So we have pretty high expectations for Florida this year now that we have been there and done the same thing.”
Both teams plan to have a service on Good Friday as they will be in Florida over the weekend. The softball team will return to Houghton early on Easter Sunday so some players will go home with their teammates.
“We get in on Monday, we practice. We play on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. On Friday we will have a service with family members…our players, and coaches,” said Reitnour. “It’s a little bit of an atypical year because on when Easter falls, we typically would have ten days in Florida. So it just looks a little different.”
The women have Wednesday off and will have the opportunity to take advantage of the different amusement parks in the area, such as Disney, MGM and Universal Studios. The men will have some time to head to the beach or the different amusement parks after they finish playing, and they also intend to do a service project while in Florida.
“A lot of the trip is that it is a great bonding experience. It is an opportunity for us to live out the mission of Houghton athletics,” said Reitnour. “It’s about more than just baseball and more than just our team. It is an act of worship and it is a ministry.”
“We are expecting some tough games, but as far as Coach told us, we have a good chance to win some,” said sophomore Ashley Popp. “It should be a lot of fun and I’m really looking forward to it because I just want to see the sun!”