Written by Eli Dean // Photo provided by McKenna Oliver
Harding’s baseball and softball teams had successful weekends to kick off each of their 2024 seasons. Harding softball kicked off their season at the Mardis Gras Invitational in Lafayette, Louisiana. The tournament gave the team two days of doubleheaders and brought mixed results.
On Friday, Harding collected two victories against Union University and Texas A&M University-Kingsville. However, the Lady Bisons dropped both matchups on Saturday against No. 3 University of Central Oklahoma and No. 24 Mississippi College.
Junior outfielder Macy Ham said the team is taking the two losses as a learning opportunity and hopes to get stronger as a result.
“I think this weekend was a learning experience for us,” Ham said. “We had a good day and a not-so-good day, but we would rather our bad days be now than later in the season. We are a very resilient and determined team. We understand that setbacks are a part of our sport, and we choose to let them help us grow rather than tear us down.”
Ham is coming off of an All-Great American Conference first-team season in 2023 and said she is hoping to have similar results this year. After batting 0.308 during the tournament, Ham said she is looking to be more consistent on the field and the plate.
“As far as myself, my goals are to stay consistent,” Ham said. “I want to be a threat every time I step in the box on offense, and on defense I want my pitchers to trust that I will make plays for them in the outfield.”
Harding softball was ranked third in the preseason GAC rankings and is looking to have steady gains as the season progresses. Senior outfielder Ashton Bryce said the first day of the tournament showed that when things come together, the Lady Bisons can have a special season.
“Friday was a really strong day with two wins to start the season,” Bryce said. “It’s really awesome to see everything you work for in the fall pay off. We have high expectations for this season, but we have a talented team, and I am excited to see us not only reach but exceed our goals.”
As for the baseball team, it picked up its first-ever series win against Delta State in program history, splitting a doubleheader on Friday and taking the rubber match on Saturday with a 10-3 victory. The offense was clicking throughout the series, totaling 32 runs in the three games and defeating Delta State by 12. Sophomore shortstop Cooper Newsom said the weekend was an all-around team success.
“The first series was an overall team performance,” Newsom said. “Every guy had each other’s back, the pitchers pitched great and got some huge outs, the hitters got some big-time hits and we played for each other.”
Newsom is coming off of one of the better freshman seasons in Harding baseball’s history, taking home the 2023 GAC Freshman of the Year award after hitting 0.305 with a 0.980 OPS while also leading the GAC in doubles with 25. Newsom said his number one priority for improvement this year is becoming a better teammate and to be the same productive hitter every game.
“As far as expectations for myself, I want to be the best teammate I can possibly be,” Newsom said. “Anything I can do to help the team win, I will do it. I need to keep being the same guy every single day — never too high, never too low; just be the same guy.”
The baseball team will play their first four home games of 2024 against Southern Baptist this weekend with two doubleheaders, while the softball team will participate in the Alvy Early/UAM Softball Classic in Bentonville. The Lady Bisons will play their first home games March 8 with a doubleheader against University of Arkansas at Monticello.
