![Walking through the tunnel created by the cheerleaders and Celebrities, senior Frances Tran smiles as the soccer team is sent off during DEN for their playoff game against Rouse tonight. Tran said the wins against Smithson Valley and Alamo Heights gave the team a morale boost to take on the Raiders tonight. “I know we were not 100% confident in those games,” Tran said. “But, Rouse is a big opponent for sure. We’re definitely going into tonight with a lot of morale [because of the previous wins].”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/frances-tran.jpg)
![Holding a bucket of materials in one hand and a roll of tape in another, anatomy and biology teacher Tyler Terry prepares for a lab. Terry said his proudest moments are when his students are happy to see him. “When I take my wife to a football game or something and a bunch of students want to say hi to me or they like to smile and wave and it just makes me feel good that the students are really kind and supportive of me,” Terry said. “[I’m also] proud when I see students perform really well in their extracurriculars because I can see how hard they’re working in my classes, [so] when I see that they’re also working so hard in other things. Like they’re winning band competitions or they’re getting awards for their theater productions, or I see them put on their choir shows, that’s like, wow, you guys are incredible.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Rags-6.png)
![Catching a ball, junior Alivia Robinson plays at the Cedar Park vs Glenn game. Having played since she was 5 years old, she is dedicated to softball and has committed to UTPB for softball. “When I got my offer it took me a very long time to decide where,” Robinson said. “Softball has always been my dream for college, and UTPB is my fit. When [I committed] I knew I was going to be loved and supported.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Lilly-Adams-3.13aliviaedit-901.jpg)
The Fight Returns
Softball Prepares For Season
Senior Kaia Oberg swings the bat as fast as she can. As the ball is soaring through the air, she sprints to first base. “The adrenaline in the box is unshakable, it’s an outnumbered battle,” Oberg said. “It’s you versus the nine defenders on the field.”
February 23, 2023
As softball games begin, the team hopes for a successful season, according to Head Coach, Cami Jenschke. With a couple scrimmages and games already in the books, the team is looking forward to this season compared to last year.
“The best part of softball season to me is watching the softball players grow as softball players and teammates throughout the season,” Jenschke said. “I especially enjoy watching girls who are newer to the sport improve and gain confidence.”
The previous season was a disappointing one, according to Jenschke and her hope is to be more consistent this year.
“The season last year started out really well and then we kind of went off the rails,” Jenschke said. “We finished practically one loss out of the playoffs, so it was disappointing for all of us.”
In order to be consistent and have a successful season, the team has to work together for every practice and game, according to Jenschske.
“I want the students to genuinely get along and value each other,” Jenschke said. “I feel like last year there was some conflict between the girls. I would like to not have that this year.”
For senior Kaia Oberg, she agrees that last year’s team was inconsistent. Because she is in a leadership role in the outfield, she hopes for a successful season ahead especially being one of two seniors on the team.
“I’m in a leadership role as a senior, my biggest goal is to lead these girls in doing the little things right, taking coaches right, playing the game right,” Oberg said. “With having a younger program this year it’s all about testing the waters and grinding through the mistakes. We are not seen by many as weak and not talented. If this team is going to represent anything it’s going to be fight. I can’t wait to leave it all out there for one last season.”
A theme of last season has been the dominant presence of upperclassmen. To have balance on the team, there has to be a balance of leadership and work ethic. Everyone knows the saying “You are just as strong as your weakest teammate.” and that’s exactly what situation they are in, according to Jenschke.
“With having six senior starters last year, we basically had to redo our whole defense and offense this year,” Oberg said. “After losing our playoff spot, we are hungry for more. We might not have the talent we did last year, but we are hoping to surprise some people.”
For the official schedule of the 2023 season, click Here.
![Holding her dog, Nova, senior Ariana Balakrishnan poses for her senior pictures while Nova wears a bandana with her college decision. Balakrishnan applied to 18 colleges in total, but she decided on Columbia in the end. “Right before I clicked the button to open Columbia’s letter, I literally looked at the camera and go ‘This is just gonna really suck because I wanted it so bad,’ and I clicked it and all of a sudden you hear trumpets,” Balakrishnan said. “There’s a video that plays when you open it and I actually didn’t watch the video, I just watched the screen go black, because every day of December before ED [Early Decision] I would go on YouTube and watch the acceptance video to manifest it, so immediately when the screen went black, I started screaming and jumping up and down. And my parents in the video are like ‘What are you doing, where’s the letter,’ and I was just screaming ‘I got in, I got in.” I just started crying, and it just felt like everything in the world came together.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ariana-2-300x217.jpg)
![Catching a ball, junior Alivia Robinson plays at the Cedar Park vs Glenn game. Having played since she was 5 years old, she is dedicated to softball and has committed to UTPB for softball. “When I got my offer it took me a very long time to decide where,” Robinson said. “Softball has always been my dream for college, and UTPB is my fit. When [I committed] I knew I was going to be loved and supported.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Lilly-Adams-3.13aliviaedit-901-600x400.jpg)
