Peninsula Seahawks are savoring every moment on the field this season
Even though they began the year with a 2-1 start in 4A South Puget Sound League play, the Peninsula High School fastpitch team remains cautious about the amount of time they have on the field.
Playing in Season Two under the Washington Interscholastic Athletics Association’s plan for return to play, the Seahawks are right where they would be under normal circumstances. But obviously, things are much different this season than the last time they played together.
In 2019, the Seahawks finished the season at 6-13 and in seventh place in the 3A South Sound Conference. Despite no 2020 season, the Seahawks are bringing back a young group of talented players led by seniors getting their last chance to play ball.
“It absolutely fantastic, the girls have worked real hard. It’s just fantastic,” said head coach Mike Paul. “The team stayed moderately close. Knowing that the kids that I have and have had for quite some time were going to get a chance for their senior day, it’s just fantastic.”
Paul has had plenty of time to coach up and get to know this group of players, having served as their head coach since 2019, and he was an assistant coach for two seasons prior. The players support one another. Seniors like Emily Barry, and Audrey Krishnadasan are all out on the field essentially coaching alongside Paul.
He believes the team will be devastating in the batters’ box. Virtually anyone in the lineup can and will put the ball in play, making their squad an offensive juggernaut.
“We’re a hitting team. We got strong pitching and we’re hitting,” he said. “Our defense will continue to grow and get better. [In the lineup] one through nine, the kids can hit. I’ve never had a group this strong. Any one of them can put the ball in play.”
In their 11-6 win against Rogers on April 3, the five-through-nine slotted batters notched seven of the 13 hits the Seahawks had. So they can and will find ways to hit and score runs.
Barry and Krishnadasan are two seniors poised to contribute for the Seahawks as well. Both are committed to play fastpitch after they graduate; Barry to Northwest University in Kirkland and Krishnadasan to Occidental College in Los Angeles.
They fit the mantra that Paul has established for his team as big hitters. They proved to be clutch in their sophomore season as Barry finished the year with a .417 batting average, 12 runs-batted-in and 21 runs scored. Krishnadasan’s season ended at a .345 average, eight RBI and 13 runs scored.
“Competing in 4A is definitely daunting but I think we are up to the challenge. Peninsula Fastpitch has a solid team with hitters all the way down the lineup. Also our pitching staff is the best it has been in a few years,” Barry said via email. “This season we have new underclassmen with great talent. I’m looking forward to see how far we go. I’m optimistic we will make it to post season and hopefully win some games there too.”
Two pitchers will toe the mound for the Seahawks this year. Returning junior starter Aislinn O’Reilly will be take the lead on pitching, but sophomore Alli Kimball will get a chance to show off her stuff as well.
Of course, the Seahawks are facing an almost entirely new league in the 4A SPSL. Teams like the Rams, South Kitsap and Puyallup all have large programs that have found continued success against top teams in the state.
However, Paul and the Seahawks believe that they can compete with those powerhouse teams. The games are just as important to them as they would be in the state tournament.
“The best part is that kids are treating it like it’s the state championship all the time because we are playing the best teams in our state,” he said. “Every game to them is a monster and they come to play. It’s gameday for them every time.”
The imparting message that Paul wants his team to understand is to cherish the moments that they are getting. High school athletics go so fast from freshman to senior year, and it doesn’t help having a whole year be taken away.
As a team, the Seahawks decided that they will keep their masks on even while on the field and actively competing. They don’t want to run any risk of losing whatever time they have playing fastpitch, and nobody is complaining.
“The adversity of Covid, from what I’ve noticed, the kids don’t think about it for one second because they are able to play,” Paul said. “I have not had a kid complain. We’re on the field, we’re in the sunlight, it’s truly been a celebration. Everything is like, ‘today could be our last day, let’s play it like it’s our last day’, and it’s been truly great.”
The Seahawks will continue their season and take the field against Emerald Ridge at 5:30 p.m. Friday, April 9 at Peninsula High School.
This story was originally published April 14, 2021 at 5:30 AM.