Senior Baylee Gray makes her way to the mound for a pitch, ready to face whichever of her opponents just so happens to be at bat. Her goal: to strike out any girl who steps up to the plate. Representing the varsity colors as well as being a starting pitcher since freshman year, Gray has earned her way practicing and going through off season as a young freshman all the way to being a senior and captain of her team.
“Being captain has its perks and it has its downsides,” Gray said. “The girls come to me for a lot and I like helping them out”
Gray has lead her team to three post-season appearances in a row and as the season reaches its midway point the team stands at 21-3. At 9-0 in district, the hunt for yet another postseason appearance shows strongly through the coaching staff. The Texas Girls Coaches Association ranks Legacy as #1 in Texas as well.
“Our offseason work has definitely showed in all of our games,” Gray said, “we still have our focus for big games.”
Many days of offseason workouts and practicing happened before the season began and even before a playoff appearance was considered. Everyday during the preseason the girls underwent running, agility training, and working out in the weight rooms to endure the upcoming season.
“Our offseason went well, we basically killed ourselves,” Gray said.
As offseason workouts went on so did the skills and ability portion of the girls softball practice. The seniors are playing their final season for high school softball and will be leaving their team and the relationships they have built with their teammates, like senior Daniella Romero who feels as if this years team is special.
“Our team has a lot of depth and we’re chill with no drama,” Romero said. “We mesh well and we’re really close.”
Gray’s fourth and final year slowly but surely draws to a close and as the season veers from the regular season into the postseason showcase and the path to a state championship proceeds as the goal stays in the minds of all the players and coaches.
“I feel like we’ll go pretty far in the postseason this year, our team is good,” Gray said.
Jill Melchiorre • Apr 3, 2012 at 5:21 am
So glad you posted a softball story.
The girls are ranked 3rd in state!!
http://www.austintgca.com/softball/polls.html