New Westside softball coach TJ Eadus-Leapley is no stranger to the game of softball. Eadus-Leapley played both Division One softball as well as professionally. Some of her honors include MVC Player of the Week and Pac-12 Player of the Week, just to name a few. Eadus-Leapley, having been such a great player, hopes that this will help her with her players for the upcoming years. 

“I can relate to our players. Playing D1 and professionally, I know what it takes to play at a high level but more importantly how to maintain it,” Eadus-Leapley said. “It’s our goal that players will look up to that and will hopefully buy into what we are doing as a coaching staff.”

Coming from such a high profile, she is no stranger to hard work. Eadus-Leapley has won a state championship as a coach in back to back years and said that the key to success is pushing her players to the limit.

“Our teams have prepared for this season by being pushed to their limits to see what those limits are. What we are asking of them is more than they’ve been asked for in the past. We have been working on our communication and our mental performance. Without these two things, our teams will not be successful,” Eadus-Leapley.

She said practices will be very productive for the growth of the team. Conditioning is also no stranger to the Westside softball program.

“Our practices are productive and uptempo. We demand a lot of hustle and a sense of urgency. We force them to think, react, and make plays they don’t think they can make. Our kids are getting used to it but the outcome of each practice speaks for itself,” Eadus-Leapley said.

Eadus-Leapley said that being a new coach means she needs to find the leaders of the team. Seniors typically know how to be leaders having been in the program for quite some time. Eadus-Leapley said that she is going to need some help from these seniors.

“We had two seniors that did not play the last few years and are now ready to step up. We have one  senior that has transferred in that will play a big role in the pitcher’s circle for us and three seniors that are chomping at the bit to prove themselves and it’s working out well for us,” Eadus-Leapley said.

The softball team will begin their season on Thursday, August 22 when they host Omaha Central.