Ag softball team set for home stand
The Utah State softball team will play its first home games of the season when it goes up against Long Beach State in a doubleheader Saturday at 1 p.m. and a third game Sunday at noon.
Before its games this weekend, the Utah State softball team is hosting the first annual softball rally on Friday at 4 p.m. at the LaRee and LeGrand Johnson Field.
The team will teach the fans some cheers to get them excited, and there will be a home run derby, head softball coach Lonny Sargent said.
The rally is open to anyone in the community interested in participating. The athletes and their families will make appearances during the rally.
Admission is free and the first 150 people receive a free hotdog and a ballpark snack.
Sargent said he hopes when the fans come out to see the softball games they will see that it’s an exciting game and will become more involved in the sport.
The team had 10th man T-shirts made and will hand the shirts out to the fans after a homerun or strikeout, Sargent said.
He said he hopes the fans will provide a home field advantage and will act like the team’s 10th player.
“We’re trying to get people involved with Utah State Softball more than they have been in the past,” he said.
The whole team is very excited for the rally and to play at home on Saturday and Sunday, Sargent said.
At a game earlier this year at Texas A&M, Utah State was shocked to see 11,000 fans in the stand.
“It was pretty cool,” Sargent said. “Down there it’s different than most places, they reward their students for going to athletic events for all sports.”
There will be bleachers put up and fans can bring their own chairs to sit on the hills surrounding the field, Sargent said.
If the team can get more people coming to the games they might be able to upgrade to grandstands, he said.
He also said the team is prepared and excited to play at home against Long Beach State.
“They are not normally known as a homerun hitting team, but their pitching is extremely good,” Sargent said. “I think we will play well. We’re not really rivals with Long Beach State but they are No. 1 in our conference.”
-ranaebang@cc.usu.edu