The 2024-25 school year is the second year of the co-op between SPA and the Minnehaha Redhawks, and unfortunately the team’s season has not been met with success. Despite their current win-loss record of 1-9, the co-op has been doing their best to push their way through the season. Players recall overall good execution, but that hasn’t quite been enough to bring the Redhawks home.
On Monday May 5th, a hot windless day, Girls Varsity Softball (GVS) lost both of their two games in their double header (two competitions or games that are held in succession, typically between the same teams) against the Breck School Mustangs. Despite the harsh weather, the intense sounds of the girls cheering each other on both in the diamond and from the dugouts of both teams echoed throughout the field, shouting motivational lines like “Good eye!” or “I know you can!” and sing-songy cheers hyping up the batter before taking her swing.
The first game wasn’t as close as the Redhawks had hoped, with a score of 0-10. However, the second game was much stronger; the Redhawks led 1-0 until the fourth inning, in which the Mustangs began to climb. The final score of game two was 4-7. The team played with incredible performance on the field. Ninth grader Jay Tilton (playing centerfield) got an impressive catch early in the second game, and Assistant Coach Madison Sacket exclaimed: “Good job, friend!” Coach Sackett is enthusiastic in expressing his pride in the players.
Furthermore, sophomore Juliette Smith, playing right field, made multiple great catches across both games, pushing the team forward. Varsity Captain Helen Frost also made great defensive plays as a Second Baseman, getting all three outs in one inning.
Even in a losing game, the players and coaches remain uplifting and supportive to each other, finding hope and joy in the small victories and the community they’ve formed. The players left the loss against the Mustangs still happy to be playing and improving together. Between silly and ever-changing cheers in the game, to taking photos together afterward, the Redhawks have harbored a culture where even losing games feel like winning, because the dugout is always full of loud exclamations of support for the girls out on the field. They’ll be back and ready to play Breck next year!
This story was updated 5/13 to add the interactive map.
