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‘Family complete’
Rodriguez returns to the Salem CC softball team, inspires Mighty Oaks to earn a split in their doubleheader with Howard
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE – It read;;u was a good Friday for the Salem Community College softball team.
The Mighty Oaks split their Good Friday doubleheader with Howard CC, winning the nightcap 8-5 after dropping the opener 10-7, but the big takeaway was head coach Angel Rodriguez was back in the dugout for the first time since going in for heart surgery March 19.
The 29-year-old fourth-year head coach underwent triple bypass heart surgery March 24 and has been resting and recovering since. He returned to his Gloucester County home Sunday.
“It’s nice to get out, it was nice to just kind of be in the environment again and just kind of pick up where I left off,” he said. “I don’t think there was any preparation of what to say walking out there other than it was good to be back.”
“It’s like a puzzle piece is back to our big puzzle,” said freshman designated player Sawyer Simmons.
“It definitely feels like we’re back together as a family and it feels like the family is complete,” said interim head coach Mackenzie Freas said.
Simmons saw Rodriguez’ truck pull up in the parking lot and shed a tear and freshman infielder Savannah Palverento said she caught a glimpse of him from second base, but for the most part the players weren’t aware their coach was at the facility until he was announced and making his way towards the dugout between games. He watched all of Game 1 on the team’s Gamechanger page in the press box after his arrival because he didn’t want to interrupt a game in progress.
“I think it was good surprise for them,” he said.
The players and coaches exchanged hugs and tears in the outfield between games. Rodriguez spent all of Game 2 in his usual coach’s chair in the dugout where he “encouraged and managed well,” allowing his assistants to handle the in-game responsibilities as he has all season. At least one player said his presence influenced her play in the nightcap. He presented his observations to the team, as he usually does, in the post-game post-mortem, a meeting moved to around first base instead of the customary right field, no doubt to conserve his energy.
He plans to travel with the team to Saturday’s region doubleheader at Mercer and be with them the rest of the season, although restricted to limited activity. He returns to his doctor for a follow up exam April 15.
“I feel great,” he said. “This is the best I’ve felt since I had (it). I don’t know what the doctor’s cure is, but I found mine.”
“It’s just really good to see Angel back out and able to be out in some fresh air watching some softball on the road to recovery,” athletics director Bob Hughes said. “Obviously our thoughts are never far from here, especially when we’re here, and we just want him to have a speedy and thorough recovery.”
Catcher J.J. Aguirre agreed seeing Rodriguez’ walk out onto the field between games put a little more pep in the Mighty Oaks’ step in the nightcap.
“It was the voice they wanted to hear again,” Freas said.
“With him back it kind of gave us that motivation like now we’re playing for him, he’s here, we need to be better,” Palverento said.
The first game was a back-and-forth affair with two lead changes and two ties through the first three innings. The Mighty Oaks fell behind 8-6 through five, but got it back to 8-7 on Aguirre’s leadoff homer in the sixth and had the tying run in scoring position with one out. The Dragons added two insurance runs in the seventh when Jalyn Rambally ran down a tailing fly in left but couldn’t hold it in her glove.
Simmons hit the first home run of her entire life in the second inning to give the Mighty Oaks a 3-2 lead. It came in her 30th college at-bat. He didn’t have one in 121 plate appearances at-bats at Pennsville and never hit one in the Pennsville Little League.
“It was electrifying,” she said. “It lit a fire under my butt. Made me want to keep hitting more and more and just get more at bats.”
With Rodriguez comfortably in his coach’s seat, the Mighty Oaks jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning of the nightcap, then broke a 4-4 tie with three in the fifth. Koski had an sacrifice fly, Palverento an RBI double and Tiana Wilson an RBI single in the winning rally. Palverento went 3-for-3 in the game, Koski had three RBIs and Aguirre went 4-for-4 with another home run.
Jordyn Busch gave the Mighty Oaks a complete game in the circle and was her sharpest late. After the Dragons pushed across the tying run on a throwing error with two outs in the fourth, Busch retired the next eight in a row into the seventh to give her team every chance to retake the lead.
“I have been struggling with getting out of my head a lot and I came back in the dugout and Coach Angel just told me to relax and take a deep breath and I did and just threw the ball,” Busch said. “I know how to pitch, I just had to remember that for a minute. That little reminder from him just helped set it all in. It’s different hearing it from him.”
Players on the Salem CC softball team wipe away tears Friday as head coach Angel Rodriguez visits them for the first time since undergoing heart surgery last week. (Top photo) Angel Rodriquez talks with Tiana Wilson (19) and Sawyer Simmons (6) between games of their doubleheader (Photo by Tyler Hacker).
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