Fliers Softball Headed in Right Direction
By ANDREW CANGIANO
Neptunes softball program, which this year added a freshman team, is experiencing some growing pains, said George Petersen, who is in his second as varsity head coach.
The expansion of the program comes after a 2005 season when the varsity team won more games than any Fliers squad in the last decade, Petersen said.
The key players for this years team are starting pitchers Jessica Assip (junior) and Lola Fragoso (freshman), as well as junior catcher Shannon Davis and seniors Rachel Pyle (shortstop) and Danielle Smith (first base.)
Last Friday, the Fliers faced one of their toughest opponents yet in pitcher Ashley Forsyth of Freehold Borough.
The colonials hurler, who shut Neptune out, is one of the top pitchers in the state and has over 1,000 career strikeouts, Petersen said.
For the Fliers to become one of the top teams in their division they must work to be able to hit pitchers like Forsyth, their head coach said.
For us to do well and be really competitive we have to be able to hit her, Petersen said.
The team has been doing a lot of batting practice to improve its hitting, he said.
Peterson said if the team can score a few more runs each game it will turn some of the Fliers close losses into victories.
Coaster Photo
Catcher Shannon Davis (22) takes a swing.
He commended starting pitcher Jessica Assip for her pitching effort against Freehold Borough.
She got out of a few jams there, which was great, Petersen said. Most of the time Jessica needs a little better run support.
Neptune, which plays in the B-North division of the Shore Conference, has achieved victories over Red Bank and Long Branch so far this season.
The Fliers junior varsity squad is coached by Jennifer Amigliore and the new freshman team is coached by Tammy Lascap.
Coaster Photo
Neptunes Jessica Assip (9) delivers a pitch during a game against Freehold Borough last Friday.
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