The Harrison softball team might be a young one, but to hear head coach Dean Marino tell it, the Huskies already have plenty of experience. With a host of underclassmen slated to play important roles for the team this year, Harrison will continue to grow as a program, without relinquishing their spot as one of the top teams in Class A.
Last season, the young Huskies far exceeded expectations, finishing with an 18-4 record despite starting five freshman players. This year, with five sophomores leading the charge, Marino feels that his players have enough varsity games under their belts so that the team’s relative youth shouldn’t be an issue.
“I think I would be concerned if they were all first-year varsity players,” he said. “But having four girls make all-league, honorable mention all-section, we’re not really worried about that this year.”
Chief among the returners are Harrison’s terrific hurlers, as sophomore Tamara Day and junior Sydney Braiotta will once again handle pitching duties for the ballclub. Day, a hard-thrower, and Braiotta, who relies more on craft and guile, may have different approaches in the circle, but the results were unmistakable last year. According to Marino, the luxury of having two top-flight pitchers means that he will be able to mix and match his lineups as the season goes along.
“A lot of it will come down to what type of team we’re playing, and that will help me make my decision,” he said. “Last year, for the first 10 games or so, we split the games; after that, it generally came down to who was hotter at the time.”
The duo will be throwing primarily to sophomore backstop Kristi Iannacchino, who has displayed great power at the plate and could be one of the Huskies’ top bats this year.
But despite the amount of talent on the roster, the first few weeks of the season could be difficult for the Huskies. Harrison is currently slated to open up on Friday, March 31 at Lakeland before hosting Pearl River on April 4. The Pirates and Yellowjackets were two of the top teams in the area last season, and preseason weather means that the Huskies may begin the season without having had practice time outside.
Shortstop Gina Nuvoloni steps to the plate on March 28.
“We always try to take on the best teams, but to face these two teams so early isn’t ideal,” Marino said. “We are aiming to have an outdoor scrimmage on Thursday at Silver Lake, which might be OK, considering the turf, but there’s only so much work you can put in the gym. You want to be able to see what the girls can do on the field.”
But regardless of how much outdoor work there is before the start of the season, Marino is confident that his group will be in the mix come playoff time.
“Last year, if you asked me before the season, I would have said we were a .500 team, and we ended up going 18-4, so we have high expectations this year,” he said. “But we’re still young, so it’s going to be big on the girls to follow through and perform when it counts.”
