Head coach Veronica Wiggins uses the game for two
purposes. The first is to see her new
team perform in game-time situations.
But, the second, and probably more important reason, is to make a
connection between generations.
On Saturday, freshmen players from the team who hadn’t
played a game as Lady Rattlers had the opportunity to play against FAMU and Mid-Eastern
Athletic Conference Hall of Famer Amber Alford and a host of former FAMU
softball players. After the game, all
current and former players huddled in centerfield and talked about pride.
“We’ve been doing this game since some time in the 90s. The old school comes back and shares the wisdom and the pride. As you saw, they played this game like they never stopped playing. Some graduated over a decade ago and have families and three or four kids. It’s just about pride,” Wiggins said.
Alford annually participates in the alumni game. “It feels great because the field is
new. I love how they did a good job of
raising money and the field looks amazing and it’s great to be a part of a
growing program,” she said.
The inspiration was evident with Christina Robbs, a senior
outfielder for the Lady Rattlers.
“I’m so excited. It
was a great game. We love playing
against the old school. We’ve really
been working on our offense and we know it will be better than it was,” she
said.
Wiggins is optimistic about the upcoming season with her
squad. “We have the circle (pitchers and
catchers), we have the defense and the offense.
Once we put the team chemistry together we should do very well this
season,” Wiggins said.
While no official statistics were kept in the game, the
current team defeated the alumni 10-3, powered by a homerun blast by senior
outfielder Brielle Gordon.