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Sports

Cary Softball Begins New Season

Trojans come off 32-7 season with supersectional appearance looking for more

The 2010 season was a dream year for Cary-Grove softball, going 32-7 and advancing to the program’s first super sectional.

With the new season starting Wednesday afternoon at home against Antioch, the Trojans start again trying to exceed last year’s finish. Cary returns six starters including pitcher Lindsay Efflandt, catcher Sarah Leudo, shortstop Emma Gaulke and the team’s full outfield of Taylor Dunne, Eleni Polites and Alexis Haley.

Coach said that the experience is always a nice thing to have.

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“Hopefully with them being on the field again and with their leadership and just their understanding of what it takes will help everyone else be cool, calm and collective and just take one game at a time and not look past the day we are on,” Olson said. “Everytime you graduate someone, you miss them but we have our whole outfield back, our whole battery back, our shortstop back and the girls who are going to step in are going to do a great job.”

There is things the team can take from last season and bring it into the 2011 campaign, Gaulke said.

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“I think we can take intensity into it, we worked to be really intense last season and we’re working to keep the intensity up,” Gaulke said.

Polites said that the seeds of something big were planted last year.

“Last year was a great building block and it kept us going,” Polites said. “Now we have the foundation and can keep building up from there.”

One big piece of the puzzle is Efflandt, who came in as a freshman last season, and won 28 games for Cary.

Efflandt said that while she has more experience now, it’s not something to lean on.

“It’s a new year, you don’t know what’s going to happen,” Efflandt said. “I just want to work hard and I know my team does too. Teamwork is what we are all focusing on more than anything.”

More than anything now for the team is just getting the chance to get outside to play after having to practice inside for the first few weeks with the weather still clearing from the winter.

C-G was scheduled to play their first five games of the season on the road before beginning the home slate against Johnsburg on Apr. 4 but Wednesday’s game against Antioch was switched from an away game to a home game. Cary will play just four home games during the first month of the season.

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