At Taylor’s first game against IU East, rescheduled for February 25, softball head coach Doug Gower said the Trojans will have an opportunity to test their skills and hone their defense.
With less time outdoors than last year before the start of the spring season, the Trojans will have to rely on their indoor live pitching and batting practices to start their season off.
“I think our overall physicality is going to help out,” Gower said. “And it should breed a lot of confidence in our team.”
The Trojans placed fourth in the Crossroads League last year, winning 28 out of 55 games. They totalled 39 home runs, a slugging percentage of .440, and a team batting average of .286. They also secured seven scholar-athlete awards at the end of the 2024 season.
The team will have much of their starting lineup returning to the field with upperclassmen like junior Madisyn Standridge, junior Delaney McCreary, and junior Brooke Sanchez. Another major playmaker is junior Kaylee Larkin. A leader in more ways than one, Larkin was named First-Team All Crossroads League and Second-Team NAIA All American in the 2024 season.
Last season, Larkin set the Taylor program record for season slugging percent with .821, led the team in total bases, and was third in doubles for the Trojans. She also led the Trojans with 14 home runs, a .437 percent batting average, .527 on-base percent, 29 walks, and 41 RBI.
At the Crossroads League level, Larkin led in walks and was ranked in the top three for home runs, batting average, on-base percentage, and more. The two-time Crossroads League Player-of-the-Week and one-time NAIA Player-of-the-Week said she was excited to gain momentum from her stellar sophomore season.
“I set goals pretty highly for myself,” she said. “So being able to see how I can improve upon what I did last year, and seeing how the season unfolds.”
Rising freshman Jayci Kitchen said the team has the opportunity to reach their full potential in the conference this year.
“Our conference is really good, and we have some pretty good teams up there, so being able to compete every single game to put us in a position to win every single game, which I think we can definitely do,” she said. “We have the talent to compete in every single game we’re in, so that is exciting too.”
Kitchen said the team has fostered an encouraging, Christ-centered environment through practices throughout the fall. She said that being on Taylor’s softball team has helped affirm that her performance is all to the glory of God.
“Being here, I love that I know that my worth is found in Christ and not my at-bats or how I perform on the field,” she said. “And everyone else has that same mentality.”
Larkin added that prayer is a major element of praise that the team uses when getting ready for games and practices. She said that at practices and on gameday, they focus on two major elements.
“We focus heavily on scrappiness and kingdom-mindedness,” Larkin said. “Scrappy being tough all the time and being who you are as a person. Then being kingdom-minded also, and looking up to God and thanking him for the opportunity.”
With Coach Gower’s lengthy career in the Crossroads League and the confidence of a largely upperclassmen team, they will aim to land in the top four of the league to seed well for the tournament or win the League outright.
