Softball Blends Returning Senior Class With Incoming Freshmen
For the Lady Flames softball team, its 2021 campaign means a return to action after months off the field. After last year’s cancellations, however, it’s also an opportunity for last year’s seniors to have another swing at a final season.
Prior to the season’s start Feb. 12, the team had not played against other teams since March 8, 2020. After an 11-month hiatus, the Lady Flames were excited to finally return to the field.
“There’s this excitement of realizing, ‘You don’t know what you have until it’s gone,’ so they’re not taking things for granted,” Head Coach Dot Richardson said.
The Lady Flames began the season on fire with six straight victories in the Spring Games. In those games, Liberty outpaced their opponents by a combined score of 41-10, with one game ending in the fifth inning and another ending in the sixth.
Following that impressive series, the team traveled to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, to compete against No. 5 Alabama and No. 7 LSU in the Bama Bash, losing to each team twice. In spite of this rough stretch, the team was encouraged by its effort against top-tier teams.
“It didn’t turn out how we wanted,” sophomore shortstop Savannah Channell said. “But … it was honestly a fun time too, and I don’t think anyone felt like we shouldn’t have been there.”
Though the losses were frustrating, Richardson viewed an increasingly challenging schedule as a mark of how much her team is improving.
“Every season seems to be tougher and tougher,” Richardson said. “That’s what I like to do, because we’re getting stronger and stronger. It’s hard to prove you’re the best until you play them and beat them. You’ve got to play the best in order to get better.”
Players on the team also speculated that the losses would serve as motivation as Liberty progresses throughout the season.
“We never really lost that fight,” senior second baseman Amber Bishop-Riley said. “I think that that’s going to help us in the long run, facing teams like that and knowing we can be right there with them, and that’s going to boost our confidence even more as a team.”
The team bounced back well as it returned home to play Notre Dame and Villanova over the weekend in the Liberty Softball Classic, defeating the Wildcats twice and splitting the two-game series with the Fighting Irish.
One aspect of this season that differs from prior seasons is that each player receives an extra year of eligibility because of last season’s abrupt ending due to COVID-19. One of the players benefitting from this is Bishop-Riley, who was allowed to remain a senior on the team for another year.
“We’re the old ones,” Bishop-Riley said. “I think that’s just a way of saying we’re going to be here this year, and we can help the younger new girls in maturing even more. I think that it has been a huge blessing to have the (extra) year.”
The Lady Flames are benefitting from Bishop-Riley’s presence on the team. She currently boasts a .457 batting average with 21 hits and 5 home runs. However, the team not only benefits from veteran players, but also from a great freshman class.
“I know many of them aren’t given the opportunity to play as much,” Channell said. “But in the dugout and just when we’re all together in the locker room, they add a lot of life to the team.”
With a strong mixture of young and old blood in the team, however, Richardson has high confidence that the season is shaping up to be a successful one for the Lady Flames.
“This is probably the most athletic team we’ve had,” Richardson said.
“I think that it is going to be really exciting to watch us play,” Bishop-Riley said. “I think a lot of fans are going to be happy with outcomes, and I’m really excited to be on this year’s team and be with the girls.”
The team hopes to improve on its 9-5 record as it prepares for its next game against Radford March 3 at home. Following that game, the Flames will compete in the Liberty Softball Invitational March 5-7. Fans can watch along on ESPN+ as well as on Instagram.
Christian Shields is a Copy Editor.