Varsity softball team seniors played their last high school game at Oak Park High School May 10.

“They always say, they always tell you when you’re a freshman, that it goes by really fast and, even if you don’t realize it, you will know as a senior that it actually does,” senior and team captain Hannah Rose Balke said.

Senior Josie Annino was a first baseman and pitcher this year.

“I won’t be alongside the girls I’ve played four years with,” Annino said.

At the end of the game, the team gathered in a huddle at the edge of the dirt field and posed for photos.

“You know what I think?” Balke said. “We play how we should play. We had a really good time and our team really bonded. I’ve never been on a team that’s this close in my whole life and it’s been an amazing experience.”

Balke will be continuing her softball career into college, leaving Coaches Mike Best and Lee Kaufman without their leading pitcher.

“[Balke] leaving this year is going to be tough for next year because she’s the pitcher that we just need to have,” Best said.

Kaufman acknowledged the seniors’ accomplishments throughout their years playing softball.

“The seniors all contributed and it was a rewarding effort from the senior class to help this team accomplish so much,” Kaufman said.

Between getting dirty on the softball field and reminiscing on the team dinners and dare nights, senior and right fielder Delyla Shenavai said she will always remember her time on the team.

“All the memories were really great,” Shenavai said. “They really made my high school [experience] count.”