The Sports ReportsWAVERLY — Villanova head softball coach Bridget Orchard, who has more than 800 victories at the Division I level, and 2023 Big East “Player of the Year” and Horseheads grad Tess Cites will be here at East Waverly Park Wednesday, Aug. 2 for a “Train With Champions” Softball Clinic, presented by the Waverly Sports Complex.
The morning session — for ages 8 to 12 — will be held from 9-11 a.m., and the afternoon session — for ages 13-18 — will be from noon to 2 p.m. The cost per player is $50.
Chelsea Plimpton, the assistant softball coach at Villanova University, will also be on hand as an instructor, along with Villanova softball pitching coach Gabby Luety, former Corning CC and Clarkson University standout Samantha (Mennig) Jilson, and former SUNY Oswego standout Zoe Mennig.
Orchard, a Binghamton native and Villanova grad, has racked up a career record of 865-495-3 in 26 years of college coaching, including a record of 112-76 in her first four seasons back at Villanova.
In 2021, Orchard led Villanova to its first-ever Big East title, a berth in an NCAA region for the first time, and win over UMBC — the first NCAA Tournament win in the program’s 45-year history.
In 2022, Villanova entered the Big East Tournament as the third seed, but went 3-0, taking down UConn in the finals.
This year, as the fourth seed, Villanova edged top-seeded UConn, 4-3, in the Big East semifinals, but dropped a 6-1 decision to Seton Hall in the title game.
Prior to her return to Villanova, Orchard coached at Division I Fordham for 17 years.
At the time of her graduation from Villanova (in 1997), Orchard was the all-time career record-holder with 216 career hits and 110 runs scored. She earned first team All-Big East honors in 1995 and led Villanova to an ECAC title a year later, while ranking as the second-toughest batter to strike out in the nation.
Orchard was a .334 career hitter for the Wildcats, stole 35 bases and played in 205 consecutive games, which remains the second-longest streak in school history.
Cites, who just completed her junior season, was named Big East “Player of the Year,” after putting together one of the best single-seasons in program history. Picked up a Second Team All-Region accolade after batting .378, with a Big East-best 74 hits, including 15 doubles, one triple, seven home runs, 45 runs scored, 45 RBI, and 10 stolen bases.
On the season, Cites had 24 multi-hit games, including six three-hit and three four-hit performances. She also had a 10-game hitting streak.
If you’re interested in registering for the camp, or you would like more information, please email: highheatwest@yahoo.com, or message the Waverly Sports Complex Facebook page.
