Hanover Central’s softball team is gearing up for the spring season after finishing as runners-up in last year’s Class 3A State championship.
Under Coach Sam Antkiewicz, the team overcame midseason injuries and a young roster to reach the finals and now looks to build on that momentum with a larger and more experienced squad.
“We only had three seniors on the team last year, so we were young,” Antkiewicz said, adding that as the season progressed, the younger players gained confidence and maturity by playing more games. Against a backdrop of rising enthusiasm, he shared that “the young core of players are working hard, and they’re excited to get things going as a group.”
With unity and guidance from the more experienced players, the team is once again ready to battle every match this season. The team graduated three seniors, but the squad remains strong with the experience of Sienna Stilley, complemented by Nora Edgerton and Jillian DeYoung, whose impact was felt throughout last year.
“We made to the state championship game, but they’re not resting on that,” Antkiewicz emphasized. “They want to win it all this year.”
Training sessions are taking place on the freshly installed turf field, and over 20 players have been participating in off-season conditioning.
