Fallon's Rylee Buckmaster throws to first against Truckee.
The Lady Wave came just within reach of a second state championship this spring.
The softball season ended with Fallon standing at 24-0 in the Northern 3A and 30-6 overall. The team’s only losses came in California during pre-season tournaments and at the state championship. Fallon coach Tammie Shemenski recalled every player had strong moments and incredible plays this season. She said it has been a great journey, and they will be stronger in the future.
“My girls are champions to me regardless of our win/loss record,” Shemenski said. “We have overcome adversity, stayed together as a team. United we stand and together we fall.”
Shemenski said it was hard having such a great season then losing at state and her heart breaks for her team since winning the championship is their dream. She said she knows they were the better team, but they had a bad day.
“That’s the upsetting and disappointing part,” she said. “To play strong throughout the year and not finish it.”
All season, Shemenski has said any team can come back from a loss and the state games proved it — Fallon won five games over Fernley this year. The coach noted playoffs are a fresh start with everyone back to a 0-0 standing.
“I tried to impress that upon the girls, that win/loss records don’t matter,” she said. “That’s softball, some days are better than others.”
Shemenski said their first loss against Fernley deflated the players, and they never quite recovered. She added after the loss, they seemed to be overthinking things rather than playing naturally.
“It was tough to watch from the side, and it was tough on my kids,” Shemenski said.
The coach, however, added she doesn’t want the loss to overshadow the team’s other accomplishments this season. She said they played very well, coming out regional champions, and worked hard all year.
Shemenski said the important thing is not to dwell on the loss and look forward. She said she tells her team if they keep looking back they can’t move forward; they have to focus on what they need to do to be ready for next year.
“You win as a team, you lose as a team. We’ll just come back stronger from it next year,” she said.
Lady Wave softball will be in offseason for the summer, but there will still be a lot happening. Shemenski said she would be available to help anyone wanting to practice, do pitching drills or any other exercises. The coach also said many players are involved in summer leagues and other softball events.
She also noted how big softball is in Fallon. She said there’s a big class coming into high school next year with several strong athletes who could join the team. She said the softball team never looks at it as rebuilding in a new year but recharging the player base.
“That’s what I like about our town,” Shemenski said. “This community’s so heavily involved in softball, and there’re great people out there in the community helping to build my program and sending kids my way that are stronger and faster and bigger.”