Lady Crusaders Hope Fast Start Leads to Better Finish

One look into the collective eyes of the Tampa Catholic softball team and you know this is a group with unfinished business.

They are determined not to have a repeat of last season, when a similar start to this year’s 6-0 break from the gate ended in a disappointing Class 3A regional semifinal loss. For Coach Vernon Tatum and the girls who returned, they are driven to work harder to avoid another late season collapse.

Tatum, in his seventh season at TC, saw his team fading even as it won the 3A-District 10 title.

“Last year we started off strong and I think we peaked too early,” Tatum said. “That’s why we didn’t go as far as we should have gone. This year I have more balance.

“These girls are level-headed, mature; they don’t let anything bother them. Emotionally they are constant. Defensively, offensively, they are constant; there’s no roller coaster of their emotions. They play consistently at a high level every game.”

Tatum said the Crusaders aren’t scoring as much as last year, but they have a higher batting average at a gaudy .404.

“They don’t strike out, they put the ball in play, they sacrifice runners over,” an admiring Tatum said. “They’re very unselfish players. They do what they have to do with runners on base.”

Tatum has also been impressed with his team’s air tight defense.

“We had some gaps that we had to fill, but we had some players that worked hard in the offseason and they filled in just fine,” he said.

Chief among them are the double play combo of junior Krista Garcia at shortstop and senior Raven Sepulveda at second. Both switched positions from last year, Garcia moving from second to short and Sepulveda from center field to second.

They haven’t missed a beat, with Tatum noting the willingness to improve.

“This is a hard working group,” he said. “Everyone stays late at practice working on mental drills at the plate and calling their own plays in the field. They are heads up and in tune with the game mentally. They’re a very easy team to coach because they want to work and get better.”

They are balanced and deep on the mound as well, with Tatum having five pitchers to draw from. Junior Tori Bohanan, senior Amber Hay and sophomore Cassie Pesce, who transferred from Wharton, are all 2-0.

Bohanan, who has started for Tatum all three years, also plays first base. She is joined by Hay, Garcia, Sepulveda and sophomore Erin Reynolds in an offense that has outscored opponents 50-6, with three of the wins shutouts.

But Tatum and his players agree the biggest difference from last year’s 17-6 team is focus, and never believing you can’t improve.

“I think there was a case of senioritis last year, especially late in the year,” Garcia said. “We won the district, but we were flat the entire postseason, especially the last regional game we lost.”

Despite strong district competition from St. Petersburg Catholic and Academy of Holy Names, Sepulveda said this year’s version can advance deeper into the postseason because it works harder.

“I think we can handle the pressure of the postseason because we stay focused,” Sepulveda said. “We pick each other up and motivate each other during games.”