The Huskies summer softball team won one of five games over the weekend at a tournament at North Marion.
Running shorthanded, just nine players, defeated the Portland Cyclones 9-8 on Sunday, followed by a 9-3 loss to North Marion.
They lost to Silverton 14-2, the Eugene Thunder 7-0 and the Oregon City Nightmares 6-5 on Saturday.
The Huskies have two players out with broken thumbs and another with an injured shoulder, said Coach Steve Hummer. Although they didn’t win that many games, he was pleased with how they handled a tough situation against tough teams.
Just about every team the Huskies are playing is like an all-star team, he said. North Marion draws players from Molalla and North Marion. Some of the teams play graduated seniors as well.
“It’s very good for our progress,” Hummer said. “We’re competitive. We’ve done very well for our situation.”
This is a team that plays without some of its regular season members, such as Emili Riggs, who is playing well on a different team that finished in the top six of a national qualifier.
The team he took to North Marion only includes four players from the 2011 varsity team, he said, and the younger girls are getting at bats in game situations.
The L stands for “learn” not “loss,” he said. “Losing means you’re learning as long as you take it that way.”
“It’s when you don’t change anything,” he said. “That’s just losing.”
The Eugene Thunder won the tournament, Hummer said. Two weeks ago, when the team had more hands, the Huskies tied the Eugene Thunder two games to two in doubleheader action.
“We were right there,” Hummer said. “We’re still right there.”
Playing at North Marion were Katie Virtue, Kellie Fanning, Hailey Hummer, Kacie Mauch, Sarah Wyatt, Kendra Whaley, Chantel Pitts, Kayln Hagle and Megan Graville.