Niles West softball is coming off a good year, capped off by one of its best post seasons in recent history. The Wolves made it to a regional final game before being before being knocked out by Glenbrook South. As the players and coaches look toward the upcoming season, they hope to capitalize on last year and make another great post-season run. The NWN sat down with varsity head coach Nicole Reynolds to find out just how they will accomplish this.
NWN: How does last season’s finish sit with you? Do you view it as a success because of the improvement, or does getting that far just make you want more?
Reynolds: Well we ended the season 17-17, and I felt it could’ve gone better. We had some injuries that affected our placement in the tournament. We won an amazing game against Maine South, but then got crushed by GBS and that hurt.
NWN: What schools will be the most challenging for you to beat?
Reynolds: New Trier is always challenging for us. But everyone else is in the same pool. GBS lost eight or nine players as well, and with them losing a lot of kids we’ll be comparable to them. New Trier is still who we’re chasing though.
NWN: Who are some players that you’re looking for big contributions from?
Reynolds: We’ve got our two seniors Alyssa Brummit and Lexi Leftakes, and we’re looking for them to lead us. We also have three juniors in Krista Dawson, Katie McDonagh, and Lindsay Aybar. Those are our core five.
NWN: Do you think this year’s team has improved over last year’s team?
Reynolds: It’s hard to say. I’ve only got about five or six leftover from last year, so not that many. There will be a lot of first year varsity players. I’m optimistic as the kids will be working hard, but it will be interesting to see how the inexperience plays in.
NWN: How far does the team have to make it for this year to be considered a success?
Reynolds: I always consider a season a success if we’re over .5oo. Our three main goals are to do well in our conference, finish the season over .500, and win a regional final game.
NWN: What will let you accomplish these?
Reynolds: Hard work, determination, and working together as a team. We’ve gotta have coaches and players working as a team and just going that extra mile.
