Softball has been a sport at Athens Drive since 2007. They have had their ups and downs, but the team has grown immensely from the introduction of the sport. For the past few seasons, the school has only had a Varsity team coached by Andie Faircloth, an English teacher at The Drive. This season is different; the school was able to re-introduce a Junior Varsity team due to an increase in players, giving more girls the opportunity to play the sport they love.
When asked about the recent addition to the team, Coach Faircloth expressed her enthusiasm. She has been coaching softball at Athens for the past eight seasons and feels the creation of the team is a big step forward for the sport.
“I am ecstatic to see the interest returning to a sport I love so much. Numbers are down across the country, with many schools not being able to field a JV team,” said Faircloth. “It’s inspiring that here at Athens, we can offer another sport for our female athletes.”
The players are equally excited about the sport’s addition. The added team consists of nine girls, all being either freshmen or sophomores. They are ready to prove themselves this season. One of these players is Lucy Whorton, freshman. She has been playing softball for seven years.
“It’s exciting to know that more people are trying out for the team so we actually have enough for two teams and have more of a chance to win more games,” said Whorton. “I’m most excited for the games. I don’t think JV has that many, but I’m still excited for them and hopefully, we win.”
Freshman Adryana Buchanan has been playing softball for two years. She’s excited that the team was created to provide more opportunities for her friends and teammates to grow and increase the popularity of the sport.
“I hope the season goes really well. It doesn’t really matter how much we win, just how much we improve,” said Buchanan. “I’m very happy they made a JV team because I’m a freshman and didn’t think I’d make Varsity.”
Coach Faircloth also shares these views. She hopes that all the girls this season will improve and that they will have a great season. The last JV team’s record was 0-2, playing both Apex and Panther Creek. This season, the JV Softball team has 5 games due to the lack of JV teams to play. The team plays Enloe, Cardinal Gibbons, Holly Springs, and Rolesville High School. She hopes that this season will be more successful, and also encourage more schools to introduce JV softball teams.
“We are fortunate to have more interested athletes this season, the bulk of whom are freshmen. With such promising talent and participation, we want to give everyone the opportunity to grow in the sport and be able to compete,” said Faircloth. “I think that more and more students are becoming interested in athletics because of the life skills and lifetime values that they offer. I would love to be able to always field a JV team, and for every school in our conference to have one as well, so that we can empower these young females through athletic participation.”
