Confidence playing a key role in Kingston softball's fast start to 2024

After last week's 13-8 road win at Central Kitsap, Kingston softball coach Brenda George and her players squeezed shoulder-to-shoulder for a photo opportunity in right field, the selfie serving as proof of the Buccaneers' fourth victory in five games.

Another offensively-fueled win followed Tuesday, a 13-2 triumph on the road against Bainbridge, leaving Kingston at 5-1 overall heading into Thursday's home game against defending Class 2A state champion North Kitsap.

Stacking victories is not a position the Buccaneers found themselves in during a lean stretch of years prior to George's arrival in 2023.

"Just a couple of years ago, Kingston was happy to get a win," George said. "Now Kingston is a team that everyone is worrying about. That's huge for us."

A glimpse at the history of Kingston's softball program reveals a picture that's difficult to characterize. Despite the fact that the Buccaneers have never qualified for the Class 2A state tournament, they haven't spent many seasons residing in the basement of the Olympic League, either.

A Hall of Famer: From player to coach, George's softball career has her headed to Kitsap Sports Hall of Fame

The school opened in 2007 and it didn't take long for former head coach Joe Schiel to build a competitive squad. Nine wins in 2010 became 14 wins in 2011. Kingston's best season to date came in 2012 when the team finished 16-5 and earned a share of the Olympic League title. Three more winning seasons followed: 14-7 in 2013, 15-5 in 2014, 9-8 in 2015.

The Buccaneers' difficulties on the diamond only materialized within the past decade: the team didn't win more than seven games in any season from 2016-22, and there were winless campaigns in 2018 and 2021.

Under George, who arrived last spring, it appears the Buccaneers are returning to their winning ways.

"There was a ton of talent," said George, whose squad finished 11-11 last year and won a district playoff game for the first time in nearly a decade. "It was on the upswing. It was a matter of putting all the pieces together."

A standout softball player at North Kitsap (2004 graduate) and Seattle University, George's love for the sport led her to coach at Kingston, where she is assisted by former North Kitsap/Olympic College/Central Washington player Rachael Matthews, former Kingston player Carmen Smith, and former North Kitsap Little League president Matthew McNamara.

"I miss playing every single day," George said. "I also love working with young, developing athletes and helping them achieve their goals, whether that’s going to college or simply having a successful at-bat in a season."

Kingston's roster offers an interesting mix with several freshmen and sophomores joining eight returning upperclassmen: five juniors and three seniors. Jayla Moon, a senior who earned All-Olympic League first-team honors in 2023, is one of four pitchers. Others seeing time on the mound are juniors Audrey Rienstra and Brooke Steele and freshman Summer Moore.

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Several Kingston team members mentioned about how confidence is playing a role in the team's fast start. Player confidence can be stoked collectively with wins, or individually with clutch performances, such as sophomore Nevaeh Sullivan's five-RBI game against Central Kitsap. She hit a two-run home run in the first inning, then doubled with the bases loaded in the sixth that enabled the Buccaneers to build upon a 9-8 lead.

"I've been working so hard. That was so relieving," Sullivan said of her critical late-game hit.

George believes confidence can also be coached — and an important trait one for players to develop as they grow older.

"We work on the mental game approach all the time," George said. "It is something my coaches taught me and something I find important to making sure that our players come in with the right approach. We all have external factors and distractions. How we manage those, and how we utilize that power for good, is where it's at."

George continued: "When you get to this level or higher, you can't get by on physical talent anymore. The team with the better mental game wins. We've been talking a lot about failure and how to use it. This game is about failure, as many are. But if we embrace our failures and learn and grow, we are better the next day. Better every day is one of our main goals. It's applicable to the players and coaching staff alike."

With spring break approaching, George knows there's plenty of challenging games ahead in what the Buccaneers hope is the most successful season they've experienced in quite some time.

"Coaching has taught me to be patient with the program," George said. "We’re building it and it’s happening. I won’t say we’re there, but we’re getting there."

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Kingston softball stacking wins together to open 2024 season