{"id":96090,"date":"2024-04-11T13:37:15","date_gmt":"2024-04-11T13:37:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thelandmark.com\/?p=96090"},"modified":"2024-04-11T13:37:15","modified_gmt":"2024-04-11T13:37:15","slug":"wrhs-softball-roster-crowded-with-talent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/2024\/04\/11\/wrhs-softball-roster-crowded-with-talent\/","title":{"rendered":"WRHS softball roster crowded with talent"},"content":{"rendered":"
By John Orrell<\/em>
\nLandmark Correspondent<\/em><\/div>\n

HOLDEN \u2014 If you happen to believe there is strength in numbers, then this year\u2019s Wachusett Regional High varsity softball team may be just the right fit for your spring sports enthusiasm.<\/p>\n

With no fewer than two dozen players ready to suit up on game days, head coach Jason Lanpher has a conundrum that any coach would love to have: having so many talented and experienced student-athletes that warrant playing time. For the first time in his lengthy coaching career, Lanpher opens the 2024 campaign with more players than uniforms.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy senior class and junior class are really big talent-wise, so we\u2019re trying to keep everyone involved, but these are just talented kids,\u201d Lanpher said. \u201cWe really have an abundance up here.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team had yet to commence with games at press time. Inclement weather had left playing fields drenched and unplayable. Still, the team, which advanced to the state semifinals a season ago, is ready as ever, looking to string together some early season victories.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important to get off to a fast start,\u201d said senior captain Bella Giaquinto. \u201cWe want to show other teams how dominant we are. We have some great new talent this year. Having this team come together is more like setting up a family. The goal up here is to unite us early on in the season, and as long as we can get along off the field, it\u2019s easier to work better on the field when we are working together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGetting off to a strong start sets the tone for the rest of the season and how we\u2019re going to play. It shows how ready we are for the season to start,\u201d said fellow senior captain Taylor Stuart.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe bring the same intensity on the field whether it\u2019s home or away. We want to show that we\u2019re a strong team working together. We set expectations, and I fully expect that we\u2019ll fulfill those expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s really important for us to get out of the gates strong and keep going,\u201d added senior captain Avery Laitala. \u201cWe have a chart that we read off at the beginning of the year, all of us together as a team.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like this year we\u2019ve come together as a team more than any before,\u201d said Isabel Moreno, also a senior captain who carries a hot bat and will be counted on to be strong offensively. \u201cWe\u2019re all really supportive of one another, working together for a common goal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lanpher will look to his captains for the leadership that will serve the team best. Position-wise, things remain in flux due to weather and decisions on how to best use the plethora of talent of this 2024 group.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll have Shayna (Bakun) and Taylor (Stuart) pitching, leading us in the pitcher\u2019s circle, with Sophie Moriarty, a sophomore coming up as our third pitcher,\u201d Lanpher said. \u201cTiegan Walsh, McKenzie Caron and Kendall Grady really lead up that batting order. They\u2019re all younger kids leading off the order with Caitlin Ciccone. Any nine we put on the field can hit the ball.<\/p>\n

\u201cCatcher is probably my strongest position. I have five or six players that can catch, but the bulk of it will be McKenzie Caron. I don\u2019t want to leave kids out, but Amanda Roche, Esmee Frohock, Bella Giaquinto, Isabel Moreno will make a difference in the outfield. In the infield, it will be Tiegan Walsh and Caitlin Ciccone will make up the middle. First and third base are unsettled right now. We still have some figuring out to do.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur expectation every year is to compete for a state title. It\u2019s a high bar, but we set it high for a reason.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have very high expectations. We want to compete at the highest level,\u201d echoed Giaquinto. \u201cThat\u2019s our goal every day. Whether we\u2019re in a game or practicing, we\u2019re always working for our end goal, which is a state championship, and I do believe we have full capabilities to go all the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Members of the 2024 Wachusett Regional High varsity softball team are seniors Laurel Field, Isabella Giaquinto, Avery Laitala, Ruby Lepore, Isabel Moreno, Amanda Roche and Taylor Stuart; and juniors Shayna Bakun, McKenzie Caron, Isobel Connor, Caitlin Ciccone, Esmee Frohock, Kendall Grady, Giana Johanson, Ella Snyder and Tiegan Walsh.<\/p>\n

Swing players \u2014 players allowed to switch back and forth from varsity and JV \u2014 are Avery Kremer, Aubrey Stahli, Gabby Geloso, Teegan Lanpher, Morgan Lucas, Sophia Moriarty, Addison Scoble and Cassandra Wilkins.<\/p>\n

Team captains are Stuart, Moreno, Giaquinto and Laitala.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By John Orrell Landmark Correspondent HOLDEN \u2014 If you happen to believe there is strength in numbers, then this year\u2019s Wachusett Regional High varsity softball team may be just the right fit for your spring sports enthusiasm. With no fewer than two dozen players ready to suit up on game days, head coach Jason Lanpher […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":96091,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-96090","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"blocksy_meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96090","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=96090"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96090\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/96091"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=96090"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=96090"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=96090"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}