KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer
HARLINGEN — 2017 was a special year for Harlingen South softball. The Lady Hawks emerged as a top tier team, got healthy and got hot at the right time while reaching the sweet 16 for the fourth time in program history.
Under third-year head coach Elias Martinez, 2018 is looking to be another strong season for the Lady Hawks.
“We’re off to a good start, we have been going back to routine plays and mental toughness,” said senior Kaitlynn De La Fuente. “We played in our first scrimmage on Monday, we’re still a little rusty but offensively we hit the ball well and on defense we made the routine plays.
“Our chemistry this year is great, we have a lot of girls back and everyone is on the same page.”
On paper Harlingen South looks young with sophomores Kayla Rodgers, Kytana Muniz and Kelsey Rivera along with juniors Natasha Canales and Krystal Gonzales. The strong core of underclassmen all have varsity and playoff experience and are ready to step into the starting lineup.
“Since my freshman year I have been a part of a playoff team and that’s something special to me,” Gonzales said. “We know our district is going to be tough, every team has plenty of talent. Our mentality is to take it one game at a time and we have the experience to do that.”
The Lady Hawks lost three seniors to graduation last season, the toughest challenge will be replacing first baseman and cleanup hitter Ashley Reyna. In the circle, Daisy Gallegos returns for her senior season and will once again be the ace of the staff.
Gallegos who signed a letter of intent to play softball at Jarvis Christian College earlier this month is eager to end her high school career on a high note and return to the playoffs.
“Signing my letter of intent felt like a weight off my shoulders,” said Gallegos. “I’m now focused and ready for this season. Over the off-season I worked on my velocity and my endurance, I want to be ready for the season and be able to go deeper into games.”
District 32-6A is shaping up to be the toughest district in the Valley. Last season the Lady Hawks finished in third place behind Weslaco and San Benito. This year South will once again be in the thick of the district race and will look to return to the postseason.
“It’s been a while since we last hit the field,” Martinez said. “We had a great run last year and this year the girls have been itching to get back on the field. The weather hasn’t cooperated with us the last few weeks, so we’re adjusting to that and getting better each day.
“The kids understand that last year’s success was last year and we can’t live in the past, all that did was put a target on our back, but the kids are up for the challenge and continue to work and get better.”