SARNIA – The 2023-24 varsity season is officially here for the Lions.
The Lambton Women’s Softball Program will host the Conestoga Condors in their lone exhibition doubleheader on Wednesday night at Germain Park. It marks the first time that the Lions have played an exhibition game in Women’s Softball after not playing one in their inaugural season.
Wednesday night’s doubleheader kicks off the 2023 season on the diamond for the Lions Women’s Softball Program, their second in the OCAA. Last year, the Lions were competitive from the start of the year, and they found themselves in playoff contention on the final week of the regular season.
Heading into the 2023 season, there’s even more excitement surrounding the Women’s Softball Program. Head Coach Greg Shortt and his coaching staff have a core group of returnees back and ready to lead the way, plus a talented recruiting class that features several student-athletes from the Sarnia-Lambton softball community.
Last season, the Lions went 1-2 against the Condors in the regular season. Conestoga picked up a 7-6 win on October 1st in extra innings in the first meeting between the two programs. Then, on October 11th at Tecumseh Park, the Lions and Condors split a mid-week doubleheader.
Shortstop Dani Ramseyer hit the program’s first-ever home run in the Lions’ 13-4 win in Game One on October 11th over the Condors.
Shortt and the Lions will be looking to close their preseason on a high note with a strong showing against the Condors on Wednesday night while building some momentum heading into the new season.
The first pitch in Game One is set for 6:00 p.m., with Game Two to follow approximately 20 minutes after.
From Head Coach Greg Shortt
“It’s good that we’re getting to play a doubleheader this year before we kick our season off. Last year, we never got the opportunity, and everything felt rushed, and it took us a few weekends to get our feet under us. So now, we’re a week ahead of schedule with tryouts finishing up this week and having the games tomorrow will let us see what we’re capable of and let the group get comfortable playing an OCAA game. I think it’s very, very valuable and will help us going into our opening weekend of the season.”
From second-year student-athlete Ciara Brown
“I think it’s exciting, you know, with a lot of new girls coming into the group. Last year, even though we were new, we didn’t have the chance to play an exhibition game. We had a few practices, but it doesn’t give you the same feeling as hitting in a game, the pitchers we’re going to see in a game, so it’s definitely good to be able to get a couple of games in before the season starts.”