Photo by Jeff Helmkamp
CM’s Ally Hardy (middle) is mobbed by teammates after swatting a homer on March 21 vs. Roxana. The Eagles entered this week with a 4-0 mark, their best start since 2012.
The text messages kept coming for Luke Angelo.
The second-year Civic Memorial softball coach has been getting several texts from players and fans on when the Eagles will start playing again. CM had seven games called off because of the rain that has been hitting the area.
“They’re just hoping for an opportunity just like anybody else in this area to get out and play the game that they enjoy playing,” Angelo said. “It’s been a really wet spring and Mother Nature hasn’t cooperated very well, but they’re just like anybody else. They want to get out there and compete.”
Even though Mother Nature hasn’t been kind to the Eagles, they’re still off to their best start in six years. Civic Memorial entered this week with a 4-0 record.
“I’m having a lot of fun,” sophomore right fielder Rebecca Harkey said. “We’ve bonded a lot better this year than we did last year and we’re caring for each other in a way that I noticed we didn’t last season.”
The Eagles improved to 4-0 with a 6-1 home victory over Southwestern on March 22. Then, rain wiped out their entire week of games that included home contests against Granite City and Edwardsville and a road game against Marquette Catholic.
“There was not much to do with the fields getting flooded,” junior pitcher Kaitlynn Wrenn said. “All we can do was throw inside and hit in the cage.”
Last year, CM finished 10-20 after starting off 6-3. Angelo, a Marquette grad, said he enjoyed working with the players in his first season as head coach despite the losing record.
“I loved every second of it,” the CM coach said. “I loved the opportunity to get out there and compete just like these girls do and just being around the sport.”
The Eagles started their 2018 season on March 14 with a 10-0 home win over Althoff that ended in five innings, their first season-opening victory since 2013. Wrenn pitched a complete game no-hitter, striking out four and walking two.
“My catcher (Cassie Reed) is amazing,” Wrenn said. “She works so well and it’s nice to have an experienced catcher. I wasn’t throwing ahead of the count early in the game. My teammates made great defensive plays for me and they kept us going.”
The Eagles also had wins over Bunker Hill and Roxana. The Bethalto school outscored its opponents 45-4 and has eight players hitting over .300.
“They’re putting the ball in play and they’re making the routine plays,” Angelo said. “Our pitchers are throwing strikes and that’s all you can ask for. They’re staying consistent offensively and defensively and it’s paying off for us.”
CM is setting its sights on finishing with its first winning season since 2012, when it finished 24-13.
“We’re doing so good right now,” Harkey said. “We’re staying focused and if we continue to stay focused like that, nothing is going to be able to stop us. I feel like we’re a really good group of girls this year and we’ve got a lot of potential.”
Stats file
The Eagles have 16 returning players from last year’s team.
Senior Susan Buchanan and sophomore Rebecca Hardy were the only Eagles on the all-Mississippi Valley Conference softball team in 2017.
Senior Cassie Reed is the Eagles’ top hitter at .667.
CM has 736 career wins with 18 regional titles and a fourth-place finish at state in 2011.
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