The effort of the Classical/University softball team shows, as the team finishes their regular season with a 16-4 record and a seven-game winning streak.

“Overall, our team saw a lot of success this season”, said assistant Coach Nicole Silenok. “Being a younger team and last year being a building year, we ended with a strong record to put us 6th in the state, and competed with all the teams in the league.”

Their 12-4 conference record earned them the #3 seed in the CRAL championship and a semifinal matchup against Parish Hill. During the regular season, they lost to Parish Hill 18-15 on April 17, then won 18-11 on May 8. On May 24, they lost to #2 seed Parish Hill in the CRAL semifinals.

“Things didn’t go the way we hoped in the CRAL playoffs, but we were more than capable of taking home the title. Unfortunately, one or two errors can completely change the rhythm of the game, and that’s what happened with us, ” said Coach Silenok. “But, I know I can speak for the coaching staff when I say we are all very proud of the girls to not only make the conference tournament, but the state tournament, as well as just make huge team improvements.”

The team has secured the #6 seed in the Class M state tournament, which is the highest the team has ever been ranked.

On Tuesday, May 30, the University/Classical team will have a home game against HMTCA. HMTCA is in the CRAL conference and has competed with University/Classical twice already in the regular season. The University/Classical team won both times; 23-8 on April 12 and 11-9 on May 5.

As for the upcoming game, freshmen, Ridima Khatiwada ‘26 is very sure of the team’s ability to take the win. “I think we can beat the team [HMTCA] that we’re going to play. I am confident in ourselves.”

Grishma Jampal Sudharshanan ’25 aims to make history and excel in the state tournament. “I hope we win, so we can go into the second round of states because this is the first game anyone in the CRAL league will win in states and we hope to be the first team to do that.”

Winning states seems to be a common goal, as sophomore Isabella D’Agostino ‘25 also wishes for the team to make its mark in the next stage of competition. “My ideal ending to this season would be to make it far into this tournament. We are ranked sixth in our division in the state so being able to make it far and play against these teams we have never seen would make for an ideal ending to the season.”

Although the season comes to a close, the future for the team still remains at a high. Coach Silenok voices her hopeful visions for the team stating “for most of these girls, including our starting lineup, it’s either their first or second year playing softball. We have a lot to look forward to next season.”