Softball Season Finished: Losses and Learning Experiences – The

SMC’s softball team displays a winning attitude as the season comes to an end.

Santa Monica College’s (SMC) softball team played their final two games at home and concluded their spring season. Since the team’s first season back in 2020, the SMC Corsairs finished with a record of 1-16.

The final two games took place at John Adams Middle School on Tuesday, March 26 and Wednesday, March 27. SMC faced the Ventura College Pirates on Tuesday and the Chaffey College Panthers on Wednesday. SMC dropped both games with a combined score of 17-0 and 8-0. Despite the losses and SMC’s overall record, Head Coach Chris Druckman could only be proud of her team.

“I can see that every player has made some growth and the end of the season is all you can ask for,” said Druckman. “That’s what we strive for.”

The Corsairs faced many obstacles this season, as Druckman noted that the team had only a small roster of 12 players, while other teams had larger rosters. As a result, many players have the ability to learn and play through multiple positions, including the lack of roster depth and injuries on the team. For some players on the team, playing softball was a relatively new experience.

“My girls of three have been playing since August,” said Druckman. “My pitcher has only been playing for two years and that’s pretty impressive … you gotta give props where the props are.”

She also mentioned that the Corsairs started their conference rivals almost a month later. According to Druckman, the spring season “legally” began on Thursday, January 27, but SMC did not play until their first game on Friday, February 25. Druckman stated that the team was directly behind this. SMC’s first 10 games were also canceled because of COVID, which is even more of an in-game experience at the team’s opportunities. The Corsairs have only played 16 games this entire season while the other teams have played at least 35 games in their same conference.

“We were already behind,” said Druckman. “We’re usually playing 40 games so that’s a big difference.”

Druckman was focused on the positives of the season and ecstatic after Wednesday’s game. SMC made some great catches and a couple of double plays while battling a Chaffey College team with a 28-12 record in their first. Druckman wants the team to play their best game of the season and Chaffey and hopes the entire team returns as another player is eligible to play another season.

The season-defining characteristic of the SMC softball team was their positive attitude, as the Corsairs were always loudly supportive of every other game, regardless of what inning it was or what the score was. Throughout the season, Druckman recalled the multiple instances of opposing fans and coaches, umpires, and even athletic directors of SMC commending the Corsairs’ great attitude and sportsmanship.

“It’s a common theme with these girls,” said Druckman. “They know what they’re up against and they’re not making excuses.”

Freshman Middle Infielder and Catcher Rafaela Reyes, who played the last three games of the season with a partially-torn ACL, reflected on the season.

“It was a very learning experience for all of us,” said Reyes. “We’re the best losing team just because we always have a positive mindset.”

Freshman pitcher Rachel Nochebuena, who’s only played softball for two years, also reflected on this season.

“I’m feeling a bit sad but kinda relieved at the same time,” said Nochebeuna. “Pitching from my body kinda hurts every single game but it was fun.”

Nochebuena mentioned that she wishes for more rest time as she’s set to play travel softball soon. She had two final words to share when it was time to leave the softball field:

“Go Corsairs!”