Seahawks spend spring break on the diamond

by Matt Reider, staff writer

Senior third baseman Kayla Rudolph (left) and senior pitcher Meagan Maguire celebrate as Payton Berry looks on. The Seahawks softball team spent much of spring break kicking off their season. Photo by Beth Shaw

While most high school students were out of the area—or at least out of classes for spring break—Coach Joe Mills spent a summerlike evening in late March at the softball field. His South Lakes varsity team was among Fairfax County squads competing in the annual Spring Break Varsity Softball Invitational.

Before the game on Monday, Mills stood outside the left-field fence, coordinating his lineup while sporting a blue South Lakes shirt. His team was spread out beside him, each pair tossing a softball back and forth to warm up. It is his first year coaching South Lakes, although he has been in the softball dugout for years. Like most coaches, he liked his team’s chances. “We have a good group this year,” he said. “We just need to work on a few things.”

Although South Lakes had four games scheduled for the tournament, the first, on Saturday, was rained out. The location in Hayfield is a 40-minute drive from South Lakes Drive, yet that night they were considered the home team, hosting the visiting—and undefeated—South County Stallions. Prior to the game, Meagan Maguire (No. 8) and Payton Berry (No. 30) threw warmup pitches along the first-base side. It was a perfect day for softball, the crack of the catcher’s glove echoing the velocity of Maguire’s fastball. The rest of the team took fielding practice from Mills as some parents raked the infield. After a dropped pop fly or two, the coach called out, “Stop being nonchalant and let’s go.”

About 10 minutes before the game, three umpires arrived and collected the game balls from the home dugout. A quick meeting at home plate followed among the coaches, umpires and team captains. Maguire started, and the first Stallions batter walked on a 4-1 count. After settling in on the mound, she retired the next three batters in order, ending the half-inning.

Like most high school sports, parents were part of the action. Ronny Shaw ran the scoreboard and announced the batters, while Sean Berry kept the scorebook. Parents staffed the snack shack selling $3 hot dogs, younger siblings ran around, and friends and family lined both sides of the field, offering encouragement and restrained commentary on the strike zone. Beth Shaw roamed the sideline taking photos. After two and a half scoreless innings, South Lakes took the lead with three runs on timely hits with runners in scoring position. South County responded in the top of the fourth with two runs. After trading runs, South Lakes held a 4-3 lead in the top of the sixth.

Senior Fiona Shaw on base. Photo by Beth Shaw

The Stallions rallied, taking a 6-4 lead before Mills called in a reliever. Berry entered with one out and closed out the inning without further damage. South Lakes, however, could not capitalize in its final at-bat, and a strikeout ended the game. The team and coach cleared out quickly, holding a brief postgame meeting outside the left-field fence where warmups had taken place a few hours earlier. The buses were ready to depart, and the team looked ahead to the rest of the tournament.

The following day, South Lakes hosted the Alexandria City Titans, and the result was never in doubt, an 11-0 victory for the Seahawks. Kayla Rudolph set the tone with two hits, including a triple. Madeline Bryant had two doubles, and Isabel Stinchcomb added two hits, while Cassandra De La Cruz, Rudolph and Maguire all contributed at the plate. Berry hit her first varsity home run, driving in three runs, and also excelled on the mound, holding the Titans scoreless with 12 strikeouts.

Later that evening, under the lights, South Lakes again played at home, this time against the Washington-Liberty Generals, but fell 5-2. Maguire started and held the Generals to three hits over seven innings, striking out four. She also issued five walks, which led to four unearned runs. Defensive highlights included a double play, while Berry and Fiona Shaw each drove in a run.

Now, more than a week later, as students have returned to their routines and the season has begun to take shape, the Spring Break Invitational stands as an early test for the Seahawks—one that offered a mix of promise, challenges and a glimpse of what may lie ahead under Mills’ leadership.