Softball and baseball teams at North Harford have started their seasons. Both teams practice and train to better their skills for game day.
Freshman Ilias Roros is on JV baseball, and has been playing for about 11 years. He thinks his season is starting off “pretty rough, since [they] are 0-3.” He says, “my goals for this season are to improve my skills and not just stick [to] one position”
Right now, Roros plays outfield and pitches. At practice, they warm up as a team, then divide into practicing hitting and throwing. The athlete explains, “I get prepared for a game by listening to rap music and talking to the guys about the game and predicting how many hits we will get in the game.”
He plays club baseball in the summer along with the school team. The player says, “I play the sport because I love and enjoy playing. Having friends on the team makes it more fun.”
Senior Mackenzie Dunaway is on the varsity softball team this year. She also plays for Forest Hill Heat, which is a travel team for Harford county.
Dunway explains, “outside of practice at the high school, I hit in my garage or I will do some fielding drills in my backyard with my brother. It doesn’t have to be a lot, but practicing on your own time is very important.”
As for the lady hawks, their season is not going too bad. She says, “in games, when we make an error, we tend to get down on ourselves when it causes us to have more errors. So we have to work on keeping up the energy and not letting the small thing drag down our whole game.”
Dunaway wants to improve on having a “positive mindset” throughout the season. As for this athlete’s career in college, it depends on whether she gets in a cadet program she applied for. If she doesn’t, she will “play at Harford Community College.”
Freshman Sean Ellis usually plays for the JV baseball team, but depending on whether there are enough players, he sometimes gets pulled up the varsity. He is a pitcher and also plays at shortstop.
Ellis shares, “our season is going pretty well because we have won the last couple of games. Our team is strong and works well together. We all have good energy when we are on the field, which keeps us from getting in our heads.”
The player loved both of his coaches because “they help [him] improve,” while also having “ a lot of fun” at the same time. He says how important being a close team is for “success” in the future.
Junior Matthew Hart plays on the varsity baseball team, and is a pitcher along with playing third base.
He strives to “win games and do well as a team in the playoffs.” He shares “everyone on the team is friends, which makes it more enjoyable to come to practice.”
