5-9-2008

One of the biggest stories from the valley in the last couple of months is coming next week. If you didn't already know, the CSI Lady Eagles softball team is headed to the NJCAA National Tournament.

Next monday, the ladies fly to Plant City, Florida to face off with the nation’s top teams. Among them, a few teams the Lady Eagles have already faced. The best news is that they've already knocked off one of the best pitchers in the nation in Salt Lake Community College's Laura Palmer.

Coach Baumert and the ladies are excited for the trip, as they made it in only the sophomore season of a promising program.

"It's actually been a pretty easy week, because everyone's been excited,” he said Friday, during the team’s morning practice session at the CSI softball complex. “They seem pretty motivated in what they're doing and they've kind of come in and been about their business. You know, we'll start towards the weekend, setting up the tournament, when we know who we face."

One of the greatest things about the Lady Eagles is their confidence in each other as a unit and their ability to overcome the seemingly impossible adversity they’ve come through this season.

Sophomore Lacey Bowman likes the team they field, having full confidence in her pitchers, and the defense that backs them up. "We have our main three pitchers and all of them have had about equal experience and they're all really strong. They all have different aspects that they bring, so I think we're good."

Second year slugger Candace Benard knows that her team will bring everything they’ve got to the table, with a shot at becoming National Champions in only the second year of the program she helped build. "We're gonna go there and we're just gonna play our all and give it our all because it'a like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so we're gonna make the best of it."

The ladies open NJCAA National Tournament play next Thursday against McLennan Community College out of Waco, Texas. That game is slated for 12 PM MDT.