Community Champions: Chapin softball prepares for battle with Eastlake

Chapin and Eastlake have not met this year in softball, but they’ve been expecting to see one another for a while.

“We were kind of expecting to play them in this round of the playoffs. It’s actually really good experience,” said Chapin shortstop Ariana Valles, speaking about the upcoming regional quarterfinal matchup.

The Huskies and Falcons will meet in game one of a best-of-three series Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at UTEP with game two and three (if necessary) Friday at UTEP.

The games were originally scheduled to take place Friday and Saturday, but have been moved up due to a scheduling conflict.

Chapin is coming off an undefeated regular season in district play. They say the secret to their success is the bond shared by teammates.

“We’re just basically a family,” said Alexia Morales, a freshman infielder for Chapin. “We treat each other as sisters, and we’re very strong together.”

The Huskies have knocked off Hanks and Lubbock Cooper so far this postseason to earn a regional quarterfinal matchup against Eastlake.

“They’re a really tough team,” said Valles. “They’re district champs over there, and we’re district champs, so it’s gonna be a tough series this week.”

Both teams have been blistering opponents offensively so far in the playoffs, so it’s no surprise that Chapin believes defense will be the key to victory.

“I believe it’s gonna come down to defense. Both teams can hit extremely well, and it’s who executes on defense the best,” said Morales.

For Eastlake’s take on the matchup, click here.