Hello! My name is Courtney Wagner (AKA Wags) and I’m a senior catcher for the Wingate softball team. This is my fourth and final season as a Bulldog (Sad, I know!) When I returned in the fall, we had seven new freshmen as well as a new assistant coach to welcome to the program.

After grueling fall workouts that included: timed two-mile runs, a gazillion sprints, the ever-so-famous hurdles (which we all love), plus individual workouts and lifting weights, the team took a much needed rest home for Christmas break. We returned to school—and softball—January 8, where a timed two-mile run awaited us. Last season was the first time we had to come back after break and run a timed two-mile run. The consequences: a player couldn’t practice until they beat their (previous) time. This year, each player had their own individual time. A handful of players made their time or less, while the rest missed their time within ten seconds. Luckily, our consequences weren’t as bad this year as in the years past (smile).

Coach Caddigan always has a neat way of giving lessons to us each year. Before coming back to school in January, Coach asked us to write a personal letter to the past student-athletes who wore our jersey numbers before we did…in order to learn more about the program’s past, as well as to appreciate it and contribute to the continued success (of the program). Slowly but surely we are receiving our letters, which is pretty exciting to hear what past players have to say about the Bulldog softball program.

Another activity…Coach Caddigan asked us to bring a rock about the size of a medium potato to the first day of practice. After hearing this, many of us wondered what in the world we would be doing. Several of us made trips to the railroad tracks to pick out the perfect rock. We brought our rocks to practice the next day…we were told to take them home and paint them either blue or yellow. With our rocks painted, we were then told to write on our rocks…adding anything we wanted to them that was meaningful to us—phrases or words that motivated us. It could be a person, a quote, a saying, anything we wanted to put on the rock that makes us happy.

After our rocks were decorated, we decorated a bucket with our handprints and put our 20 team goals for this season around the bucket. At the end of the week, we all placed our rocks into the bucket. Coach Caddigan told us that if we put one rock in the bucket, it’s easy to kick the bucket around. But if we stick together and put all the rocks in the bucket, nobody can come in and kick us around in our house!

Our first game is February 9 at home versus St. Andrews Presbyterian College at 1. I think everyone who reads this blog should definitely come to our game! We still have a long way to go, but we’ll get there! Go Bulldogs!