With their pre-season at an end, the Revere High softball team and new head coach Joe Ciccarello were set to open their 2010 campaign yesterday (Tuesday) against former Greater Boston League rival Medford .
“The dress rehearsal is over and the time has come to bring up the curtain and see what we’ve got,†said Ciccarello, who had ample opportunity to size up his charges in three scrimmages last week against Malden, Melrose, and St. Mary’s.
“Malden won the GBL title last year and is a favorite to repeat, and St. Mary’s is the defending Division 3 state champ, so we played some teams that we know are going to be very strong to give us a good idea of where we stand,†said Ciccarello.
Although the coach saw a lot of good signs, “We still have a lot of things to work on,†Ciccarello said. “We played well at times, but we also had times where we made mistakes. But we’ll know who is ready to play when we start to play for real.â€
One positive aspect the first year coach has noted of his 2010 team is that he feels he has strong leadership in his senior class. “Our captains (Sara Selevitch, Paige Licata, and Jessica Simpson) are doing a really good job,†said the coach. “They do a lot of things right. It’s very important for the senior class to impart to the underclassmen that sense of the need to win.â€
Selevitch was slated to get the starting nod against Medford, but Ciccarello said he expects pitchers Briana Lauletta and Kat Prince to see a lot of action on the mound throughout the season.
After Medford, the Lady Patriots play at Everett tomorrow (Thursday) and host Salem next Tuesday.
