Spring is among us. Although the weather has not fully transitioned into the nice, warm, spring temperatures, we should expect to see, sunshine and blossoming flowers shortly. Spring does not only mean nice weather and pretty flowers but it also means the start of spring sports. Bethany has five sports this year including softball, baseball, girls tennis, golf, and track. Each sport has begun practicing and are on their way to having great seasons.
The softball team has been in practice for five weeks now and are certainly ready for games to start rolling. Practicing for five weeks straight can be very difficult for a team, but the softball group has only gotten stronger from this long stretch of no games. Coach Krysten Parson (KP) said that she is looking forward to getting this season underway and is ready to play some other teams. The softball teams first game is on April 16 at C
ulver Community at 5:00 PM. As to what to expect for this years season, KP said that she is not quite sure how it will go, but she thinks that this group of girls will be fun to watch and coach. The team has changed quite a bit from last years team, mostly due to the loss of a large amount of seniors. KP said, “We lost a large senior class, and a lot of experience, but I think the girls are working hard. I think the big difference is lack of experience, but I do think that this group communicates well on the field with each other, too.” The team has transformed tremendously this year and there is only one way to find out how this season will go: come watch them play.
Baseball games have already started and the boys are in need for more support from the fans. The boys had their first game Monday, March 30 against LaVille losing 3 to 6. Even with the loss, the coach, Brent Reinhardt said he is looking forward to everything this year. 
He also mentioned “I love baseball and I love watching these guys play.” Brent, along with all the baseball boys are very excited to get the season rolling. This year’s team will be much different from last year. Brent said the defense and pitching will be better this year along with a competitive vibe. He said, “we will be more competitive and fun to watch.” Brent described the team as coachable and explosive. They should be exciting to watch.
With a new coaching staff and almost all underclassmen players, the girls tennis team has a long season ahead of them this year. Heavily loaded with freshmen and with only two seniors, the tennis team is on a new journey this season. Both jv and varsity teams lost to Mishawaka Marian on Monday, March 30 for their first matches. But the team is not discouraged and are looking forward to the rest of the season. Anne Nisley (‘18) commented on thi
s season saying she is very excited to start playing. Anne is playing 1 singles for the team as a freshman. Of course, this is very intimidating for Anne simply because she is competing against most juniors and seniors from other teams. She says, “I am just happy to get the experience of playing people that are better than me because I know it will make me better.” She recognizes that this season will be hard but fortunately she has positive teammates cheering her on. The underclassmen are ready to learn and grow as a team. Ann said there have not been many struggles this year for the team, but one thing they could improve on is helping each other out with weaknesses. The girls are all ready for the season to get going and cannot wait to get better as a team.
Golf is one of Bethany’s club teams. Gary Chupp, the athletic director, stated that there is no huge differences between a club or sanctioned team. He said “they both participate under IHSAA guidelines and are eligible for section/post seasonal play.” The only difference comes down to the money aspect. Gary mentioned “F
rom an administration standpoint, club sports are not budgeted – coaches are volunteer, and there is not a budget for equipment / uniforms etc.” The boys golf team works just as hard as all the other sports, they are just considered a club team. The teams first game is on April 18 at the Goshen Invitational. The boys would love to have your support, so come watch them compete for the first time this year.
The track team, like the tennis girls, have a pretty young group of athletes. There is one senior leader this year for track. Most of the team are pretty committed to running; the team looks almost identical to the cross country team. Austin Hooley (15’) the only senior and Hannah Yeakey (17’) the strongest girl runner will lead the team this year for the Bruins. Each member of the team is excited to start running and get faster as the season goes on. Hannah Yeakey said she is very excited to get the season rolling, but also cannot wait to start running with her teammates. She mentioned that this year there are many new runners on the team and she is really looking forward to getting to know them. She says that running with opposing team friends is one of the funnest part of track. She knows a lot of runners from cross country season and can’t wait to compete against her friends. The team this year has very strong runners and even though they may be young there is a lot of potential for each runner.
The nice spring weather should be rolling in anytime now, so come out and support all of the Bethany teams. Each sport needs fans to keep the them working hard. Look on the Bethany homepage for season schedules.