The Odessa College softball team needed to make up some ground to secure its second straight trip to the NJCAA Division I Softball Championship.
After suffering a 4-2 loss to Howard College in their second game of the NJCAA Region V West Tournament, the Lady Wranglers responded accordingly by coming away with three straight victories.
Coach Jeff Jackson felt like his team needed the loss to shake off a stagnant energy that overtook the team’s offense.
“We had been really talking about our lack of offense for a long time,” Jackson said. “We pushed it to the team, we discussed it and we challenged them.
“At the end of the day, it just took a situation where they had to fight or go home.”
Odessa College is set to return to the national tournament in Yuma, Ariz. with a group of players that has shown resilience through the season.
Having a large group of athletes who have been there could also give the Lady Wranglers a boost.
When Odessa College played in last year’s tournament, the team ran into some tough defensive challenges to finish at 1-2.
The Lady Wranglers suffered a 1-0 loss against Seminole State, bounced back with a 5-4 win over Central Alabama and closed out its participation in the tournament with a 10-2 loss to Wallace State.
Lauren Gonzales was part of last year’s team and has been a key piece for Odessa College this year, recording 20 RBIs to go with 30 stolen bases.
The sophomore said winning this year’s Region V West Tournament has a bigger feel than it did last season because of the amount of fight in the team.
“After losing that first game, it was definitely difficult,” Gonzales said. “I think all of our hopes were down, but I think we came together as a team and Sunday we played our hearts out.
“That’s all that matters and we take it one game at a time, always.”
Throughout the campaign, the Lady Wranglers have shown that they can bounce back quickly from setbacks.
After opening the year with a 1-2 record, they went on a 24-game winning streak to propel themselves into the upper spots of the NJCAA Division I softball rankings.
A 9-3 loss to Howard College on March 26 was followed up by 23 consecutive victories before a 7-1 loss to Midland College to close out the regular season.
It didn’t come as a surprise to Jackson that his team was able to find another rhythm when it needed to keep the season alive.
The head coach never lost faith in his team regaining momentum at the plate, noting that his players just got cold at the wrong time.
“It takes a special team mindset to be able to do just that,” Jackson said. “I think we knew we were up for the challenge, it was just a matter of how long was it going to take for us to finally figure out how to swing it a little bit.”
Jackson added that last year’s unofficial goal was to win the Western Junior College Athletic Conference and make it to Yuma.
Once the team reached that goal, priorities shifted.
The veterans have emphasized to their younger teammates how they want to achieve more against a loaded field.
Gonzales said this team’s energy can play an important role in how things go when the Lady Wranglers make the 12-hour trip to the desert.
“You never see this team down and even when we did get knocked down and we lost, we came back the next day,” Gonzales said. “This team never gives up, that’s for sure.
“This is a team that is always willing to fight for our goals.”
This year’s tournament is scheduled to take place May 24-28 at the Pacific Avenue Athletic Complex in Yuma.
No. 5 Odessa College will enter the competition with a 52-5 overall record and will face No. 12 San Jacinto College at 2 p.m. Tuesday.
>> Follow Chris Amaya on Twitter at @OA_CAmaya
