GOOD HOPE, Ala. — The Good Hope Lady Raiders are ready for another year of softball after making it to Regionals last year and freshman Alexandria Steed talked about all she gained from that experience.
“We came out pretty rough, but we did good for us being so young. We can’t use that excuse now, so I think we’ll be good this year,” Steed said. “I learned that there’s always going to be some really tough games and we’re always going to have to bounce back from that. What I’ve learned since I’ve been on varsity is that the older girls are going to back you up, no matter what. They always have your back and Tim is going to be hard on you, but he loves you.”
Alexandria has soaked up as much as she can from each of her coaches.
“They are very tough, but they love you and they believe in you. They’re always going to be the first one to cheer for you when you go down, but they’re always going to be the first one that gets on your butt when you make a mistake. That’s what you love,” she said. “I learned how to pick up my own teammates and how to pick up myself from a mistake.”
This is Alexandria’s third year on the varsity team, and she has enjoyed every second of being around her teammates. She has learned so much from the team’s lone senior, Bailey Keef.
“It’s been awesome. I love it every time I step up here. If I’m having a bad day, they make it better. If I’m having a great day, they make it even better. They’re very fun to be around,” she said. “Bailey is also the first one to pick you up. She taught me how to pick up my teammates. She’s taught me how to be a teammate that picks other people up. One game doesn’t define you. One play doesn’t define you.”
Alexandria worked on a lot in the off-season to get ready for this year and has some individual and team goals for this season.
“I went from being an outfielder to a catcher and that was a big change. I have to work on more blocking. I also worked on hitting the ball very well and trying to place it where I want to,” she said. “My individual goals are to have a .400 batting average, have a good amount of stolen bases, and hopefully, I don’t get thrown out. The team goals are to continue growing, being able to play all the positions very well, winning area, going to state and winning it, and have a good winning record this year.”
Alexandria talked about what will make this year’s team very special to watch. She has seen this team grown a lot during her time on varsity and her game has improved a lot with each passing year.
“What will make this team special to watch is everything. We worked on everything: Look at our hustle when we field. We’re smart when we base run. We’ll sacrifice our batters for our base runners to get that run. Our hitting is going to be great this year,” she said. “We’ve grown a lot. All of these girls have grown into positions that they’ve never played before. We’ve grown hitting-wise. We’ve grown trusting each other better. We’ve grown putting in more effort and not being scared.”
She added,
“I’ve gotten a lot more confident at the plate. When I go up there, I know what I want to do with it, and I know where I’m going to go with it. I try my hardest to go that way. With fielding, I’ve gotten a lot more confident with catching. My confidence has gotten a lot better. I’m becoming a smarter softball player. We all are.”
Alexandria had several softball role models growing up and talked about the best advice that she’s ever been given.
“Destiny Brewer is one of my role models. She’s been my batting coach. I look up to Aliyah Andrews. When I first met Tim, I wanted to be just like Skylar when he coached her, so I look up to him. Coach Phillip Keef, he’s also my role model. He carries himself a great way. He carries himself confidently. He’s funny. He makes me laugh,” she said. “Always have confidence. Just be more confident. Tim has told me to just not play afraid and to not get scared to make a mistake. If I make a mistake, he’s going to pick me up. He’s going to be the first one to help me.”
Copyright 2023 Humble Roots, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
