Softball Off To Hot Start

Grace Brethren Softball off to a hot start after taking down non-league foes Carpinteria 11-0, Ventura 7-0 and Moorpark 7-1. Part of the Lancer’s recent success is due to freshman pitcher Lili Arana. In the first three games of the season, Lili has pitched two no-hit games, totaling 35 strikeouts. According to senior outfielder Chardaye Beltran, the other key to success for the Lancers has been team unity and communication. They have spent a lot of time focusing on taking things one step at a time and starting with the fundamentals. 

Just last weekend the team participated in the Linfield tournament where they stayed overnight as a team. This created great opportunities for team bonding and unity. It paid off, SR Sarah Leong opened up their game vs Chaparral with a 3 run homerun, they went on to win 8-0. There was no slowing the Lancers down, they defeated Adelanto 10-0 in 5 innings and Xavier 4-0 in the championship. Individual standouts were senior Chardaye Beltran, all tournament team, and freshman Lili Arana was named tournament MVP. 

When asking the team what they enjoy best about this team, their answer was two-fold; the fun that they have together and playing for Coach Bird. Coach Bird has a stellar resume behind her name, she received an athletic scholarship to play softball at Arizona State University. She was a four year starting catcher for ASU and went to the Women's College World Series twice. Coach Bird was placed on the 2006 WCWS All-Tournament Team. After graduating with her BS in Kinesiology and MA in Physical Education, Bird was assistant coach for the team and helped get them to the 2008 National Championship College Softball game. Coach Bird returned to Simi Valley where she held various coaching roles from 2009-2012 seasons before starting as Head Softball Coach for Grace Brethren High School in 2016. 

Lancers open up league play on the road 3/5 at Foothill Tech. The game will be played at Ventura College softball field #2. The first home game is 3/12 at Grace Brethren High School, 4pm vs St. Bonaventure High School.