Longer journey, same goal
COVID-19 hasn’t derailed Marlins’ hopes for a third national title
With one half of an already arduous season behind, the Virginia Wesleyan softball team is “just getting started.”
The two-time Division III national champions are off to another promising start as they hit the midpoint of the season with a 16-2-1 record after winning their first 10 games. The Marlins are tied for second with East Texas
Baptist (15-1) in the latest National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division III national poll behind Lindfield (15-1).
In 2020, Virginia Wesleyan was similarly hot out of the gate, marching to an 11-1 record before COVID-19 necessitated the season’s cancellation. Virginia Wesleyan, which was seeking a third national title in four years, was left wondering what could have been.
Now, with the pandemic still on the forefront of everyone’s minds, they’re after the same old goal, albeit in a whole new set of circumstances. And while it’s been smooth sailing for the Marlins so far on the field, off the field has occasionally been a different story.
“It’s just draining,” head coach Brandon Elliott said. “I think as a coach, it’s very similar to being a parent. … You just worry about (your players), their well-being and their health in general, and
I think you’re multiplying that stress and that worry because I’m trying to control so many things outside of softball.”
Describing long bus rides for the team, which hasn’t been doing any overnight trips for away games, and meals taken on fast-food curbs, Elliott noted that players are dealing with a lot more changes to their routine than just remembering to wear masks and
social distancing. Although it has been tough, the team knows its situation is not unique.
“I think the message that I’ve told the kids is we’re not any different than any other athletic team in the country. We can’t use the pandemic as an excuse for why we’re not successful,” Elliott said.
The Marlins feel fortunate to have a strong veteran presence in their locker room, including fifthyear seniors Jessica Goldyn and Madison Glaubke and graduate student Hanna Hull.
“Including our fifth-year seniors, we have 11 seniors, and this is the year I think it pays to be a veteran group because they know how to win and they know how to compete,” Elliott said. “They know what the grind is going to take. … Fortunately, when you have an older group, you don’t need to teach as often or as much, so that’s been a huge advantage for us.”
Among the players playing a huge role in the Marlins’ early success is Goldyn, who was recently named the National Player of the Week by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association. Heading into Tuesday’s doubleheader against Randolph-Macon, she led the Old Dominion Athletic Conference in RBIs (21) and stolen bases (32) and is second with a .534 batting average.
Hull and teammate Emily Seale are tied for the ODAC lead with eight victories each, and Hull’s 65 strikeouts over 52⅔ innings lead the league. Hull has 117 career victories and more than 1,000 career strikeouts.
Goldyn, an Ocean Lakes High graduate who transferred to Virginia Wesleyan after the team won their second consecutive national title in 2018, is eager to add her name to the Marlins’ championship pedigree.
“It gives me chills thinking about getting a ring myself,” she said. “Just with the girls, I’ve made such good relationships with them, and it would just be awesome to share that experience with them as well.”
But to get there, the team knows that there is plenty of work ahead.
“We need to remember the feeling we had last year when it was taken away from us and how bad we felt that we couldn’t compete and be out on the field, and remember that every day because at any point, if things don’t go the right way, it could be taken away again,” Elliott said. “… I’d say this season’s been exhausting, but with that said, I’m glad that I’m tired because that means that we’re still on the field.”