Conference champions

By Jenna Hudson

With last weekend's sweep over Sacramento State, the Bronco softball team completed their season by wining the Pacific Coast Softball Conference. When the Broncos entered conference play they had a losing record, but with the help of a 10-game conference winning streak to close the season, the Broncos turned their season around and ended up with a 30-23 overall record, 16-4 in their conference with a one-game edge over Loyola Marymount.

Going into this past weekend leading the PCSC, the Broncos controlled their destiny.

"I was excited with the position we were in, where it was in our control whether we won the conference," Head Coach Marcy Crouch said. "We weren't reliant on any other team winning or losing."

The Broncos needed to sweep Sacramento State this past weekend to assure a win.

"Our goal was just to go out and have fun," sophomore Jenny Brown said. "We treated each game like it was the championship."

"There was definitely pressure to produce," added sophomore Jessica Clee. "But it was more just focusing on playing our own game, not on the stats. Personally I just wanted to produce RBI and base hits to help out the pitchers."

The Broncos had an extra incentive to play well this past weekend. Assistant Coach Mick Myrback offered to shave off his mustache if the team swept Sacramento State, and Crouch made a concession to let the team dye her hair.

Before the beginning of their last game, instead of chanting "Broncos," the team chanted "Extreme Makeover," according to Brown.

But aside from such antics, the team emulated a focussed attitude all season long that largely contributed to their successes on the playing field.

"We kind of have a cool confidence," Brown said. "We go out there and get the job done. We just go out there with an even head, knowing we can do it."

This attitude was seen after winning their conference on Sunday.

"The team just went out and took care of business," Crouch said. "They just have a no-nonsense attitude."

Continued Crouch, The team just wanted to get their last outs and celebrate, there were high-5's and they drenched her with water, but nothing overblown.

"There was a sense of so much accomplishment putting together a winning season with a better record than last year, after getting off to a slow start," Clee said.

Ultimately, the team's upbeat attitude allowed them to turn their losing season around.

"We were somewhat disheartened that we didn't play well early," Brown said. "But the competition at the beginning of the season was unbelievable. We played a lot of Pac-10 schools."

Continued Brown, "After all of the girls faced the best and beat the best, we had a true sense of confidence."

"It was discouraging at times," Clee said. "But it showed the team's character."

Their difficult preseason schedule - the toughest in the PCSC - prepared the Broncos for conference play. But in a conference full of talented teams, they had their work cut out for them to win conference.

"You never know what to expect," senior catcher Rachel Sherman said, when asked whether she expected her team to win the conference. "We played well against hard teams so we knew we could win, but in our conference anyone could beat anyone on any given day. Everyone in our conference is on a pretty even skill level."

However the team did succeed in standing out from the rest of their competition.

"Heart and dedication set us apart," Clee said.

The skill of the team also allowed them to shine.

"We have by far the most talent of any of the teams," Brown said.

"Consistency is a big factor, especially during the last half of the season," Crouch said. "Through the tough scheduling against top-10 teams, the team learned how to compete."

Continued Crouch, "The team really came together at the end. They just started to click."

Once the team got hot they were able to ride a conference winning streak to the end.

The young team was led and inspired by the two seniors, Sherman and pitcher Jaime Forman-Lau.

"The seniors lead by example," Brown said. "They have a real pro-attitude and confidence. They are very cool and collected."

But truly no one player is responsible for the entirety of the team's success.

"There is no one standout," Sherman said. "Players throughout the entire lineup step up, everyone on the team contributes."

The team still had to turn a losing season around and come back from early conference losses to Portland State and Loyola Marymount.

"The change in the team is that they learned how to compete in every game," Crouch said. "They were never going to lay over and die."

But their whole attitude about the season and their goals had to change for this to happen.

"Our goal this year was to win conference and reach regionals," Brown said. "We lost our focus and lost games early. We played well when we stopped focusing on goals and began to battle game to game."

"I didn't look very far ahead," Crouch added. "Just one game at a time, one pitch at a time. The team did a good job competing in the moment. I coached the team to not let any moment slip away since one pitch can make or break a game."

Now the team has to wait until March 16 to find out whether or not they will proceed in postseason play. Because their league is new, they do not receive an automatic berth. Instead, they are hoping for an at-large berth, which is based on their strength of schedule and record.

But overcoming a difficult preseason and overwhelming their conference competition is reason enough to celebrate.

"It was good to see," Crouch said of their win. "The girls worked really hard. I'm just excited for the team."