The softball team fell 5-2 and 6-5 in their doubleheader against Henderson State University this past Saturday.

Freshman Courtney Derrick said the team is not perfect, but it is constantly growing and changing into a championship team.

“We played really well against Henderson State,” Derrick said. “Although the outcome was not what we hoped for, we put up a strong fight.”

Coach Phil Berry said the team tries to focus on playing one pitch at a time instead of getting tied up with the outcomes.

“We need to be more consistent on defense and making key plays when the opportunity is there,” Berry said. “We are spending a significant amount of practice time on team defense in order to help us make better decisions and perform better in the game-changing moments.”

Sixteen out of the 18 players on the team had no experience playing college softball until this year. Berry and Derrick both expressed the importance of teamwork in softball and said it is a huge contributor in making the team stay positive and play their best.

“It is a team game,” Berry said. “A pitcher can’t do much without a catcher and a defense behind her. One of the most rewarding parts of this year and this team is to see how they have bonded together. They are very close on and off the field, and it shows when they play.”

Derrick said the collaboration and teamwork is an important factor for softball. She said without teamwork, accomplishing team goals becomes harder.

“We win as a team and lose as a team; it’s never one person,” Derrick said. “We are awesome at always picking each other up and letting each other know that no one is out there by themselves.”

The softball team will host Ouachita Baptist University for a four-game series this Friday at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. and Saturday 12 p.m. and 2 p.m.

Freshman Carolyn Clayton said despite the loss, she believes the team played well against Henderson State and needs to carry the positive out of that series and bring it into this weekend against Ouachita Baptist University.

“I feel this weekend, personally, and as a team, we all played really well,” Clayton said. “We fought really hard each game and played with intensity and at the level we needed to. Henderson has a great team and it was a great competition for us. I think if we keep practicing hard and practice with the same intensity we have been, we will have a great weekend against OBU, and that will also help us going into the conference tournament.”