Inaugural softball/baseball season in Italy

NAPLES, Italy

Talk about pressure.

This year, for the first time, Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Italy played softball and baseball. And the Naples High School girls softball team and the boys baseball team finished the inaugural season with 8-0 records and South Region championships.

The Wildcats rolled past the other Italy-based teams — Aviano, Sigonella and Vicenza — and now will play the rest of Europe’s Division II teams beginning Thursday in the European championship tournaments in the Kaiserslautern, Germany, area.

So, what was it about Naples that churned out both the boys and girls Italy-based champions?

Depends whom you ask.

The players say it’s the top-notch coaching (scoring a few brownie points along with runs for good measure.)

The Naples coaches, Cynda Masterman for the girls and Duke Marlow for the boys, say it’s a combination of the players’ talent and spirit to win, coupled with great community support, from the schools and parents to Morale, Welfare and Recreation employees — from whom, for all intents and purposes, the school stole its players.

Up until this year, there was no DODDS-Europe baseball, and MWR ran the baseball program for high-school age players. And while the rest of DODDS-Europe played varsity softball, the American schools in Italy did not.

While most of the teens have been playing for years with the MWR-sponsored leagues, playing on the varsity level was a whole new ballgame.

"Finally, we have some place to put all this talent," said junior Ashley Travis, 16 — and someplace where the players can vie for college scholarships and possibly catch the eye of a sports scout or two.

Maintaining a varsity schedule wasn’t always easy, said Logan Porchie, 16, who participated in baseball, football and wrestling while posting a 3.9 grade point average.

It’s all about prioritizing your time, the high-school junior said. "You need to get good grades in order to play sports and go to college," he said.

During the tournament, the Wildcats will be playing teams they have never encountered on the diamonds. But they won’t be psyched out, they said.

According to Tori Ward, 17, co-captain of the girls softball team, the games will give them a chance to "play up, rise to the occasion to do better."