WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) — The West Lafayette softball program has experienced its fair share of ups and downs over the last couple of years, but through it all, head coach Chauncey Fry relied heavily on the commitment four of her players gave to the team.
The Red Devils featured four seniors in the 2020 class. Shai Szulkowski was the team's starting short stop. She plans on attending James Madison University in the fall.
Caroline Parker played next to Szulkowski at third base, and will head eastward to Athens to attend Ohio University.
Kiersten Wood also played in the infield at second base. Wood will enroll at Wheaton College in the greater Chicagoland area in the coming school year.
Lucia Perrin was set to begin her first year with the club. She'll attend Indiana University.
It's hard to find many positives when you're season is canceled, but Fry says the situation reminded the seniors their contributions did not go unnoticed.
"I think the silver lining that we've been able to find this year, with everything going on is that the underclassmen have really stepped up and really let the seniors know how much they meant to them," said Fry.
"I don't know if that happens if we don't have an event like this take place. The timeliness of the seniors, they have been committed to every off season workout that we've done. I think just showing the underclassmen what it means to be dedicated has been their biggest contribution to our program."