Nancy Conlon has wrapped up her final season at the J. Taylor Finley Middle School softball coach. She’s retiring as a teacher at the end of the month. The longtime Blue Devil mentor was able to work with some talented young players this spring who could have an impact on the program for years to come.
The 17 player team was captained by eighth graders Mia Molina-Baptista and Lauren Donaghy. Molina-Baptista was Finley’s pitcher while Donaghy starred at shortstop.
“Lauren is a solid defensive player with a strong arm,” Conlon said. “Mia worked hard and pitched all of our games. She has a lot of potential.”
Seventh grade catcher Emily Barba and eighth grade first basemen Brianna Borenstein were also standout players.
“Emily was our catcher and she really gave it her all and caught every game,” Conlon said. “She was definitely our most improved player. Brianna is a solid first baseman with a strong bat.”
Finley’s talented roster also included seventh graders Kathleen Cocoman, Gabriela Genao, Aniya Guerrero, Angelina Hernandez, Giovanna Lanfranco, Odalys Salazar Bolanos and Belinda Velasquez Maldona; and eighth graders Sofia Ciccotto, Damaris Fuentes, Maggie O’Toole, Erika Reyes, Kaylee Smalling and Anne Tyrell.
“This team worked hard and really improved in the short season that we had,” Conlon said. “There are eight seventh graders on the team who will hopefully return next year.”