Ithaca College softball running through opponents

It doesn’t get much better than outscoring an opponent 27-0 in a season-opening doubleheader. That is exactly what Ithaca College softball did to Elmira College on March 24. The team followed that with another doubleheader sweep against RIT on Saturday.

It’s a perfect way to start the first true season for head coach Hannah Quintana, who coached just eight games in her initial season before COVID-19 put an end to college sports last year. Quintana, a 2007 IC graduate, is an Ithaca College Hall of Famer for her exceptional playing career that included two trips to the College World Series.

Quintana talked about what it meant to her to finally coach a game on Ithaca’s campus this year.

“Obviously, Kostrinsky Field means a lot to me personally, and this program means a lot to me,” she said. “It’s been my dream job since I was an 18-year-old freshman. It’s a little surreal to actually be on that field as a head coach. The way our team performed was just really exciting for our program. We heard from a lot of alums and former coaches, and we have a lot of people in our corner. After all the disappointment of last March, it was really good to have a really happy and proud day for our program.”

After her first season was abruptly cut short, it was a long year and then some before Ithaca took the field again.

“It definitely was kind of a roller coaster for us,” Quintana said. “We went through really optimistic times and then times where a real game day felt like it would never arrive. But this whole time, they’ve been working really hard. Some of the people who have performed the best so far got to work last March and have been really digging down deep into their skills and practicing everything that we’ve been working on for a full calendar year. When we faced other pitching, they were just ready to explode.”

And explode they certainly did. In just 10 innings of work during the season-opening doubleheader, the Bombers hit seven home runs and six doubles, with junior Julia Loffredo’s three homers leading the way. Quintana discussed the team’s mindset heading into the season and what the doubleheader showcased.

“We wanted to have a game plan of being aggressive and understanding what our process was at the plate, but we really try and have our team play free,” Quintana said. “We don’t want them to be in the box overthinking or clutching the bat too tightly. We’re trying to let our athleticism shine in all aspects of the game and trying to get that free, fast game.”

Quintana also discussed the start of Loffredo, who was 7-7 with 8 RBI in the season-opening doubleheader and followed that up by driving in two more runs in the second doubleheader.

“She really just blew me away,” Quintana said. “She’s somebody that has just worked so hard. She was putting up crazy numbers inside for us. We have a HitTrax machine that tracks exit velocities and how far the ball is traveling and she was just putting up some crazy numbers. It was exciting for her to actually see a real ball go over the fence. But she’s been swinging like that all preseason for us. Her performance overall wasn’t surprising given what she’s been doing the last six or eight weeks.”

Unlike high school sports, there will be a postseason in college sports this year. The bar has been set for the Bombers after the hot start, and Quintana has her eyes on the prize this season.

“Our team has been able to put everything in perspective,” she said. “We’re trying to win a national championship and we feel like we have all the component pieces on our roster to do that. We allowed ourselves to enjoy Wednesday for what it was. Opening day, first game in over 370 days, but we also understand that this season’s going to be a grind.”

With nationally ranked RPI not currently participating in spring sports, the opportunity is there for the Bombers to take control of the Liberty League this season.

“We want to get ourselves in the best position in our conference and host whatever version of a conference tournament takes place,” Quintana said. “At that point, we’re trying to win the automatic qualifying bid for our conference to represent the Liberty league at Regionals.”

The toughest test of the season is coming up next for the Bombers as they’ll face nationally 11th-ranked St. John Fisher in a doubleheader March 31. If they are able to come away with a pair of victories against the Cardinals, a national ranking is sure to follow.