Softball Season Ends In Wild Card Round
The Lady Sharks softball season ended in dramatic fashion—a 1-0 loss to Gulf Coast State College in the wild card round of the Florida College System Athletic Association Division I softball championship on May 6.
A solo homerun in the top of the seventh inning by Lady Commodores outfielder Kali Austerman delivered the game’s only run.
“This season, we grew tremendously as a team both on and off the field,” said freshman outfielder Mayah Bostic. “We pushed each other to improve everyday, held each other accountable, and celebrated each other’s growth.”
The Lady Sharks finished the season with a 31-19 record, besting their win total from the previous year by 11. This year’s mark was the squad’s best since the 2014-15 season, when they finished 34-21.
Despite the impressive record, the team finished sixth in the hyper-competitive Citrus Conference, but they managed to rank 11th in the National Junior College Athletic Association division I softball poll.
The Lady Sharks started the season scorching hot, winning their first 12 games and boasting a sterling 17-1 record after 18 games. However, they cooled off during the remaining two months of the regular season, posting records of 9-7 in March and 8-10 in April.
“Overall we did have a good season,” said Lady Sharks head coach Gina De Agüero. “In my opinion, and probably a lot of people’s, we have one of the toughest conferences for JUCO softball in the nation, so pretty much our losses all came to ranked teams.”
Despite the heartbreaking ending, the Lady Sharks had notable moments this season.
On March 11, the Lady Sharks won the second game of a double-header (2-1) verus Florida Southwestern State College. The Bucs finished the regular season ranked No. 1 in the NJCAA division I polls with a 47-5 record. They made it to the NJCAA Division I Softball World Series before falling to Northwest Florida State College in the championship game, 4-1.
Individually, several Lady Sharks had breakout years. Freshman shortstop Caroline Mito and pitcher Carina Amarilla were selected to the Citrus Conference First-Team.
Mito, who was also selected as the Citrus Conference Player of the Year, led the Lady Sharks offense with a .450 batting average, seven home runs, 40 stolen bases and a .686 slugging percentage.
Amarilla, a sophomore, posted a 16-8 mark and a 1.74 earned run average.
Mito headlines a bumper crop of freshmen who will lead next year’s squad including pitcher Amanda Hand, who had a 5-2 record, 40 strikeouts and a 1.58 ERA, and outfielder Carmela Smith, who had two home runs, 16 RBI and 22 stolen bases.
“I am really excited for next year,” De Agüero said. “I have some good talent coming in, and I expect us to do well and just go out there and compete, as we did this year.”
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