Spring Sports are in full swing at Blanchet and most of the teams are now in the middle of their seasons, with a couple or more games/matches already played; however, there remains one team that is still looking to play their first real game (in their eyes).

Coming into this week, the Blanchet Varsity Softball team will finally be able to roster all of their team members. This comes after an initial week of competition with a depleted roster, due to a number of players not having completed the league regiment for number of practices attended before participation in game.

“We only had 10 girls that were actually eligible, so it was kind of hard to figure out where everyone was playing and to get the team moral up because a lot of people had to sit on the bench,” said senior Annie Wright.

As if the team’s roster situation wasn’t enough  for the Braves to deal with to begin their season, the team has had to face another dilemma keeping them from competing to their full abilities. In fact, this dilemma has kept the team from competing at all. The dilemma is, of course, having games get rained out.

“It’s really unfortunate when you put in the work at practice and don’t get the opportunity to show your growth and how well you prepared,” said sophomore Gianna Marchese.

For a problem that isn’t faced by the likes of the Soccer, Lacrosse, or Track and Field programs, the Softball team is forced to show a tremendous amount of resilience as their season is constantly fluctuating and even shortened.

Some even argue if it is really necessary or not for games to be called of because of weather conditions. The reality is, not only is it a safety hazard for players, poor weather conditions can actually make the game a one-sided affair.

“Softball is a game of precision,” said assistant coach Ms. Reese White. “The heavy rain makes the ball extremely hard to grip. This actually harms the team on defense dramatically more than the team on offense. If a pitcher is unable to grip the ball, she will throw erratically and will have to significantly slow his pitches. As a result, the batting team will be at a great advantage as it is not significantly harder to swing a bat or run on a dirt track in the rain.”

Simply put, when it is raining during a game, the advantage goes to the offense. Nonetheless, when a game is called off, no one is at an advantage.

Whether or not you feel that games should be called for weather conditions, it doesn’t change the fact that there is a hardworking group of girls, patiently waiting to show the Metro League what they’ve got.

The Braves hope to take on Ballard this next coming Monday. You’d be surprised as to what this squad has in to show at full potential. Almost as surprised as if it didn’t end up raining on a spring afternoon in Seattle.