As a coach, Katie Bettencourt has never forgotten her Southern New Hampshire softball roots.
Friday afternoon in the Conference of New England semifinals, with her Endicott Gulls’ season hanging in the balance, that Granite State allegiance again paid off handsomely.
The regular season CNE champs KO’d Hartford, 13-3, to move to championship Sunday, and as has been the case all year, a pair of former Salem Blue Devils – like Bettencourt — and a Windham High grad spearheaded the charge.
Freshman Maddie Beeley, junior Vania Moniz and senior Ella Tower combined to go 6 for 11 with five run scored and five RBIs.
Just another day for the Gulls.
“The expectation is for us to win here,” said Beeley, a second-team All-NH Division I outfielder last spring. “We keep the energy high and make sure we are all there for each other, too. “I’ve known Endicott has been a good team. It’s a big part of the reason I am here. I figured if I came here, maybe I could add to it.”
Beeley has stepped right in and made an immediate impact as a freshman this year, batting .365 headed into Saturday with a homer, 21 RBIs and 25 runs scored, playing 36 of 37 games. Tower has played in all 37, hitting .314 with 28 RBIs and 15 runs scored. And Moniz took over as the starting first baseman about a third of the way through the season and has never let it go, batting .258 with 15 runs scored.
“Growing up, all of us were very competitive. I remember playing these girls on my team now when I was younger,” said Tower. “(Softball) is such a tight-knit community, and we all just kind of found our way to the same place, and we all love it.”
Together, they’ve helped put Endicott in a familiar spot at the top of the conference rankings.
“We’re all best friends on this team, very connected personally, and it helps with team morale and confidence,” said Beeley. “We all have each other’s back, it’s great. These are girls I’ve played against and played with in high school. It’s fun being on the same team with kids I’ve seen as rivals.”
Both Tower and Moniz helped play huge roles in Beeley assimilating so quickly, not just to the team but to college softball.
“I didn’t know Ella, but I knew she was from Windham, and I really look up to her. We’ve gotten very close playing in the outfield together,” said Beeley. “And Vania spent first semester studying abroad (in Italy), but when she came back, she played a big role in me getting to know the other older girls.”
For Windham’s Tower, a captain and three-year starter, the tight-knit group and the success on the field are nothing new.
But this time around, it all takes on a fresh meaning.
“I’ve been playing softball my whole life, and it’s coming to an end. As a senior, it’s pretty scary,” said Tower, who is applying to schools to study to be a physician’s assistant. “I want to go out with a bang. For me, it’s the last run, my last chance. At this moment, I’m already done with school, so this is what I’ve got. I want to run with it as long as I can.”