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<v Speaker 1>Right for coming.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, you're very welcome. All here we go, three two one,

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<v Speaker 2>Hi everyone on Bob Joyce. It's the HUSKYHQ dot COM's

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<v Speaker 2>Coaches Corner podcast. And now that we can totally focus

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<v Speaker 2>on the spring sports, I thought it'd be a time

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<v Speaker 2>to catch up with Laura Valentino and Yukon softball. They're

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<v Speaker 2>having a very good year at twenty four and fourteen.

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<v Speaker 2>They're a game out of first in the Big East

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<v Speaker 2>at eleven and four. They have eleven games left to play,

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<v Speaker 2>including three conference weekends. It starts this weekend at DePaul,

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<v Speaker 2>but they have a little business with Fairfield first in

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<v Speaker 2>a midweek game on Wednesday. But Laura, first of all,

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<v Speaker 2>thanks for doing this. And when I think of Yukon softball,

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<v Speaker 2>I think of speed, stealing a ton of bases and

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<v Speaker 2>having some decent pitching and good defense to get you wins,

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<v Speaker 2>get you wins on the season. But this year it's

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<v Speaker 2>a little different because suddenly the bats have come alive.

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<v Speaker 2>And from talking with Adam Jardino, it sounds like you're

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<v Speaker 2>about to break the school record for home runs not

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<v Speaker 2>only by a team, but an individual hits runs scored.

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<v Speaker 2>It's like, Wow, this offense, it's suddenly fun to watch,

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<v Speaker 2>even more so when you go with the long ball.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks Bob, I appreciate that, and yes, and talking with

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<v Speaker 1>you and Adam and just you know, every broadcaster that

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<v Speaker 1>typically talks to me knowing that I came from hops

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<v Speaker 1>to softball, which very much was driven by pitching in defense. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, looking at the past five years here at

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<v Speaker 1>Yukon and us doing great things and having success, and

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<v Speaker 1>really coming together with my staff after last year and

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<v Speaker 1>realizing that we needed to not totally make a change

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<v Speaker 1>to what we do here because we very much have

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<v Speaker 1>a specific type of kid, but we definitely put some

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<v Speaker 1>more time into our offensive production and how we were

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<v Speaker 1>going to be successful in the Big East this year

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<v Speaker 1>was to be able to score runs. Right, the team

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<v Speaker 1>that wins the Big East Tournament is typically the team

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<v Speaker 1>that has the strongest offensive production, so we dedicated a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of time and preparation to that. Coach Max done

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<v Speaker 1>a great job or our kids are really working hard

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<v Speaker 1>in the cages and buying in and as you can see,

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<v Speaker 1>we're very much as tough out at the plate and

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<v Speaker 1>creating a lot of chaos for a lot of other teams.

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<v Speaker 2>Right now, Grace Jenkins obviously and her sister were a

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<v Speaker 2>great story when you recruited them. Grace Catches plays first base.

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<v Speaker 2>She's on the verge of breaking the school record for

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<v Speaker 2>home runs. She's got Caitlin Breslin, who will talk about

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<v Speaker 2>in a minute behind her in the home run department.

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<v Speaker 2>But Grace just seems like she's been such a rock

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<v Speaker 2>as the number two hitter in the order behind Lexi Hastings,

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<v Speaker 2>who can still steal bases. She's twenty two of twenty four.

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<v Speaker 2>But your top four seem to be pretty solid in

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<v Speaker 2>what they've done this year.

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<v Speaker 1>Yes, absolutely, I mean Grace actually this weekend broke the

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<v Speaker 1>program record for single season RBIs and home runs. So

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<v Speaker 1>great job by Grace and real she just has, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>really capitalized on making a small adjustment in her swing

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<v Speaker 1>and again an extremely hard worker. That's part of our

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<v Speaker 1>culture here. You know, she's working in the cages. She

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<v Speaker 1>is really really tough out of the plate. She's hitting

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<v Speaker 1>the ball for more power this year. And really really

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<v Speaker 1>proud of her and what she brings to this program.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, if you look at the top four, three

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<v Speaker 1>out of those four and I would even consider Kaya

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<v Speaker 1>a later on this team as well. But three out

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<v Speaker 1>of those four players are captains for us, and they

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<v Speaker 1>really set the tone for our offense, obviously being in

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<v Speaker 1>the top four, but also in the locker room and

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<v Speaker 1>what they're driven to do this year as a team.

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<v Speaker 2>What about Grace behind the plate where you've seen the

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<v Speaker 2>biggest improvement in her game.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, ever since Grace came in this year, she you know,

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<v Speaker 1>we talked about where she wanted to set some goals

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<v Speaker 1>behind the plate this year, and the biggest thing was

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<v Speaker 1>her being able to steal strikes. So from the beginning

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<v Speaker 1>of the season, she comes in and either we do

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<v Speaker 1>some film and work off of the machine and we're

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<v Speaker 1>really working on her being able to steal those borderline

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<v Speaker 1>pitches for our pitching staff behind the plate. And you know, hey,

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of people told her ever since she was younger,

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<v Speaker 1>that she wasn't going to be a division on college

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<v Speaker 1>catcher because she was lufty, And I would say she's

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<v Speaker 1>proven a lot of people.

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<v Speaker 2>Wrong stealing strikes as an umpire. Okay, I like that,

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<v Speaker 2>All right, Let's go all right, let's go to players

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<v Speaker 2>who take big jumps, and you hope that from Saya

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<v Speaker 2>freshman to a sophomore Caitlin Breslin certainly has done that.

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<v Speaker 2>She was off the bench last season. Now she's playing

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<v Speaker 2>right field, hitting four hundred and forty two hits. She's

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<v Speaker 2>six foot tall, and of course, the big game that

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<v Speaker 2>everybody's talking about is I think the first or second

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<v Speaker 2>game at Creighton when she hit four home runs. I

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<v Speaker 2>believe it's the seventh player ever to do that in

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<v Speaker 2>college softball. Talk about the jump that this young lady

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<v Speaker 2>has taken and how she's really just grab the handle

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<v Speaker 2>and gone with it.

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<v Speaker 1>Absolutely, Brez is a kid that came in this year

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<v Speaker 1>and took advantage of an opportunity. Obviously, you know, we

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<v Speaker 1>lost the quite a big senior class, but you know,

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<v Speaker 1>she knew she had an opportunity in front of her,

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<v Speaker 1>and she took it with her work ethic, and she's

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<v Speaker 1>been an extremely coachable kid. You know, It's one of

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<v Speaker 1>the things that I absolutely love about her. I would

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<v Speaker 1>consider her a kid that really is extremely consistent, and

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<v Speaker 1>you love that as a coach. When you come to practice,

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<v Speaker 1>you know what you're going to get from Breas, you

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<v Speaker 1>know what you're going to get from her on game day.

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<v Speaker 2>It's the same.

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<v Speaker 1>It's a smile. It's a consistent attitude in the way

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<v Speaker 1>that she approaches the game and that's contributed to a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of her success. And then in the creating series,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, it's it's such a joy to coach bred

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<v Speaker 1>and these kids in moments like that really just fill

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<v Speaker 1>you with joy because is it's really all their work

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<v Speaker 1>that they've put in and they deserve it. And to

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<v Speaker 1>see them celebrate together in such a unique moment that

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<v Speaker 1>it doesn't happen very very often. I mean, she was

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<v Speaker 1>National Player of the Week. How cool for her and

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<v Speaker 1>this program and to see them be able to celebrate

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<v Speaker 1>her and her continued success is amazing.

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<v Speaker 2>Laura, was she under the radar as far as the

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<v Speaker 2>recruit goes when you got her.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, I you know, I always I joke about this

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<v Speaker 1>with my dad and you know, I tell him, He's like,

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<v Speaker 1>who's coming in? You know, wh who's going to be

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<v Speaker 1>the next player, the next freshman? And are they any good?

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<v Speaker 1>And you know, ever since I saw Breds, I knew

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<v Speaker 1>that she was going to be a power threat in

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<v Speaker 1>the East and she obviously it just wasn't you know,

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<v Speaker 1>the right time last year and this year she's crushing it.

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<v Speaker 1>So you know, I like to say not to you know,

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<v Speaker 1>pat myself on the back by any means, but I

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<v Speaker 1>had a lot of belief in her and her ability

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<v Speaker 1>to be able to do what she's doing this year,

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<v Speaker 1>and you know, just really saw her as somebody that

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<v Speaker 1>was going to produce a lot of power in the

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<v Speaker 1>middle of our lineup since I recruited her. Now would

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<v Speaker 1>other people say, you know, maybe they didn't think the same,

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<v Speaker 1>but I really saw something special in her and she

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<v Speaker 1>was exactly the type of player that we like. She's athletic,

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<v Speaker 1>she's team for she's extremely coachable, and that's contributed to

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<v Speaker 1>what she's doing right here this year and her sophomore year.

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<v Speaker 2>Laura, your Biggiest Player of the Year. A Lexie Hastings

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<v Speaker 2>is back at the leadoff spot. She's twenty two of

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<v Speaker 2>twenty four in stolen bases, one of the few threats

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<v Speaker 2>that you have that can steal. But with the change

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<v Speaker 2>in the lineup and the more power that you have have,

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<v Speaker 2>you reduced her attempts to steal bases or is she

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<v Speaker 2>still looking to be as aggressive as possible?

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<v Speaker 1>For sure, I think a little bit of the game

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<v Speaker 1>has changed, and also just playing to our strength just

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<v Speaker 1>in the sense of why are we going to steal

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<v Speaker 1>when there's a possibility that we're going to hit the

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<v Speaker 1>ball over the fence or just hit a double and

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<v Speaker 1>be able to score that way versus the risk of

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<v Speaker 1>getting thrown out. So I think that's definitely been part

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<v Speaker 1>of some of the change in her stealing a little

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<v Speaker 1>bit less. And then obviously you have the replay, being

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<v Speaker 1>able to replay leaving early. It's a really tough play.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, I think it's obviously changed the game. If

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<v Speaker 1>you look around the country, there's a lot less stolen

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<v Speaker 1>bases now because of that rule, because it's such a

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<v Speaker 1>small margin of error, and you know, I don't like

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<v Speaker 1>to say we got away with it in the past,

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<v Speaker 1>but it was definitely a lot tougher to call. So

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<v Speaker 1>that's definitely changed her game slightly. But you know what,

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<v Speaker 1>she is just a kid that starts with setting the

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<v Speaker 1>tone for our chaos in our offense. And what's so

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<v Speaker 1>tough about her is she can bunch, she can slap.

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<v Speaker 1>She'd hit the ball in the gap or over the fence,

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<v Speaker 1>So try defending that and look at where the defense

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<v Speaker 1>has to play her. Crazy. The other day, the infield

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<v Speaker 1>was in and the outfield was on the warning track.

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<v Speaker 1>So it's pretty incredible to watch her play, and I'm

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<v Speaker 1>just soaking in and being extremely grateful to coach her

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<v Speaker 1>every day. You know, she's a senior, but I can

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<v Speaker 1>tell you she's definitely even a mark on.

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<v Speaker 2>This program, right Laura Valentino with us yukon softball coach,

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<v Speaker 2>you mentioned you graduated a large senior class pitching, took

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<v Speaker 2>a little bit of a hip of Peyton Kenny and

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<v Speaker 2>Hope Jenkins anchor a relatively young staff. But then you've

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<v Speaker 2>got some youth defensively too. I know you have a

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<v Speaker 2>new shortstop.

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<v Speaker 1>Yes, yeah, So Peyton and Hope are really stepping up

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<v Speaker 1>really nicely in the starting role. And what's so great

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<v Speaker 1>is they compliment each other really well. And then you know,

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<v Speaker 1>the rest of the staff obviously, Sidney Amber and Stella.

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<v Speaker 1>What's so great about our staff is we're getting better

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<v Speaker 1>as we go throughout the season, which I'm really excited about.

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<v Speaker 1>We compliment each other really well, have some different tools

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<v Speaker 1>there on the mounds, and you know, obviously it's been

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<v Speaker 1>very exciting to see them, you know, get better with

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<v Speaker 1>coach g She's been a great addition to the staff

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<v Speaker 1>and just being able to have her knowledge and her

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<v Speaker 1>mindset of winning championships on our staff has been an

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<v Speaker 1>extremely huge asset, Laura.

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<v Speaker 2>After you open the conference season with three against Villanova,

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<v Speaker 2>and by the way, you kind of not lost the

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<v Speaker 2>series this season, They've taken two out of three in

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<v Speaker 2>everyone but one where they swept. You went to Tennessee

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<v Speaker 2>to play the seventh rank Lady Vols, lost the opener

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<v Speaker 2>in a run rule game, then lost four, three and

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<v Speaker 2>ten and six to three where they scored I think

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<v Speaker 2>three runs at the bottom of the six to a

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<v Speaker 2>take charge. What did you take out of that series

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<v Speaker 2>that maybe has given this team a boost of confidence

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<v Speaker 2>heading back in a conference play.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, when your team competes against the top team in

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<v Speaker 1>the country, a top ten team in the country, why

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<v Speaker 1>can't we dominate in Big East play? I think it

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<v Speaker 1>was a tremendous spoos to our players' confidence and belief

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<v Speaker 1>in themselves and what they have the capability to do.

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<v Speaker 2>I mean, you.

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<v Speaker 1>Look at every Big East conference series and like you said,

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<v Speaker 1>outside of Villanova, we're putting up a lot of runs.

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<v Speaker 1>We've run ruled every team at least once, so we

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<v Speaker 1>have the capability to when we show up, we're a

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<v Speaker 1>really tough team to beat. One through nine. Offensively, pitching, defense,

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<v Speaker 1>all three aspects of our game really showed up big

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<v Speaker 1>time in that series against Tennessee, and it showed and

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<v Speaker 1>just to go back to cat Pettis, I think she

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<v Speaker 1>has grown tremendously since that series because she's a kid

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<v Speaker 1>that you know, every freshman you come in and you

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<v Speaker 1>are talented, and she's extremely athletic, and you know, she's

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<v Speaker 1>made some mistakes early on in her career and she

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<v Speaker 1>knows she can make those plays. But I've challenged her

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<v Speaker 1>to make the plays at a higher level and that's

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<v Speaker 1>what's going to put her over the top of being

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<v Speaker 1>not only an amazing hitter, but an amazing shortstop. And

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<v Speaker 1>she has extreme potential. She's a joy to coach. You

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<v Speaker 1>can really push her and challenge her, and I think

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<v Speaker 1>that Tennessee weekend was a turning point for her of hey,

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<v Speaker 1>I can make a mistake, but really it's about how

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<v Speaker 1>I bounce back and bring the energy to the team.

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<v Speaker 1>Because I'm the shortstop and it doesn't matter that I

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<v Speaker 1>have the label freshman next to my name.

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<v Speaker 2>I understand that all right. Schedule wise, you have eleven

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<v Speaker 2>games left Fairfield on Wednesday. Then you go to the Pall,

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<v Speaker 2>you host Georgetown, you get one with BC, and then

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<v Speaker 2>there's a little carrot at the end dangling sitting there.

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<v Speaker 2>As long as you take care of business with a

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<v Speaker 2>three game home series with Saint John's. I know you

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<v Speaker 2>can't look ahead, it's one game at a time, but

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<v Speaker 2>it seems like with the leadership that you have, the

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<v Speaker 2>focus seems to be there that as long as you

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<v Speaker 2>guys do what you're capable of, you should be able

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<v Speaker 2>to take care of business heading into that final weekend.

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<v Speaker 1>Yes, absolutely, I mean we are going to continue to

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<v Speaker 1>play Yukon softball and work to get better every single game.

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<v Speaker 1>Right it's on paper we're playing the worst two teams

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<v Speaker 1>in the conference, but it's going to be really about

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<v Speaker 1>us continuing to climb the ladder and move the needle.

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<v Speaker 1>For us and for our program, that's been the emphasis

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<v Speaker 1>emphasis this year is keeping our foot on the gas

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<v Speaker 1>pedal and never letting up. So we're going to continue

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<v Speaker 1>to have that be our focus going into the upcoming

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<v Speaker 1>couple of weekends, and then it's great to finish up

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<v Speaker 1>at home and a big home series and obviously get

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<v Speaker 1>some moment I'm going into the tournament.

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<v Speaker 2>Laura, Finally, I imagine some of your young ladies paid

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<v Speaker 2>attention to the women's basketball team.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, just a little, yes, Yes, absolutely. It was definitely

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<v Speaker 1>an extremely exciting time for us and for Yukon and

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<v Speaker 1>women's sports here on campus. And it was funny, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>our reporter said, you know, it's not often that the

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<v Speaker 1>folk gets taken off of Paige Becker's, but Caitlin Breslin,

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<v Speaker 1>it's four home runs. You know, that's pretty exciting. But

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<v Speaker 1>you know, I just am extremely proud and just grateful

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<v Speaker 1>to be a part of the atmosphere here at Yukon

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<v Speaker 1>and what Gino has done for the athletic department and

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<v Speaker 1>the support that he's given me and my program is

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<v Speaker 1>really special, and I am excited to spend some time

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<v Speaker 1>with him hopefully here over the next month and cms

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<v Speaker 1>the softball games.

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<v Speaker 2>And if I'm not mistaken, I think Paige used to

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<v Speaker 2>go to softball games.

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<v Speaker 1>Right, of course he'll be there. I wouldn't doubt it

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<v Speaker 1>that she'll be at one of our home series down

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<v Speaker 1>the stretch here because she's also been a great supporter.

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<v Speaker 2>All right, Hey, Laura, thanks for a couple of minutes.

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<v Speaker 2>We appreciate it always and go kick some button the

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<v Speaker 2>next few weeks.

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<v Speaker 1>Awesome. Thanks so much, Bob, go.

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<v Speaker 2>Husky's always great to catch up with Yukon softball coach

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<v Speaker 2>Laura Valentino. Most of the remaining games are at home

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<v Speaker 2>Fairfield Wednesday, the weekend of the twenty fifth, twenty sixth,

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<v Speaker 2>and twenty seventh against Georgetown, home against BC on the

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<v Speaker 2>twenty ninth, and then the first week in in May.

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<v Speaker 2>It's three against Saint John's that could decide the regular

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<v Speaker 2>season Biggies Championship. Go to Yukonusky's dot com and check

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<v Speaker 2>out softball for more information. That'll do it for another

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<v Speaker 2>edition of a Coach's Corner podcast with Laura Valentino. I'm

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<v Speaker 2>Bob Joyce. Thanks for listening.