It’s been two years since the sounds of softball were heard on the University of Washington campus, but with the playing of the Husky Classic last weekend the Washington Huskies are back on the diamond.
The Huskies (20-2) hosted the Seattle University Redhawks (13-13) and the Portland State Vikings (3-12) as they began play last Friday under beautiful sunny skies at Montlake.
Despite the teams having limited fans the crowd still produced loud cheers, yelled at perceived bad calls, did the YMCA and gave a “shout” during the fifth inning stretch.
The teams all seemed excited to be playing in Seattle but none more so than Washington who, after seeing last season shut down before they could play at home, they were glad to finally play on their home turf.
“We are pretty excited to be able to open up our conference season at home. What an opportunity for us to be able to do that,” said Huskies Head Coach Heather Tarr. “For the last 600 and something days we’ve been waiting for this moment.”
Familiar faces like senior pitcher Gabbie Plain, graduate shortstop Sis Bates and graduate catcher Morganne Flores head a strong and seasoned team into 2021.
The Huskies have been focusing on getting back to Husky softball and Coach Tarr used the pre-season to be ready to play in the one of, if not the, toughest softball conference in the country.
“The way that we’ve been preparing to compete has been the way that we’re going to compete in the Pac-12,” said Tarr. “…We’re going to play our best game every game as best we can.”
The weekend ended with Washington extending their win streak to 10 as they defeated the Vikings and Redhawks.
The number six ranked Huskies start the defense of their 2019 PAC-12 championship this weekend as they host the number seven Arizona Wildcats (14-3) beginning at 6 pm on Friday, March 19 at Husky Softball Stadium.