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Sports

Softball Standout Gigi LoDolce Poised For Big Senior Year

This week's athlete of the week is Harrison's experienced backstop Gigi LoDolce.

While some high school seniors are going to party destinations like Cancun, Aruba or the Bahamas for spring break, Gigi LoDolce is escaping to Florida. But LoDolce is not going to the sunshine state for beaches or bars, she is going purely for softball.

LoDolce and her Harrison softball teammates are going down to Walt Disney World's Wide World of Sports for extended spring training.

"I would rather play softball in Disney than party in the Bahamas any day," LoDolce said. "The Bahamas would be a nice place for a vacation someday, but Disney is always so much fun."

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LoDolce has been the varsity team's backstop since she was 12-years-old. She hasn't missed a single game in four years, garnering comparisons to a high school version of Cal Ripken or Lou Gehrig. LoDolce has battled through two knee surgeries during her career. However, no matter what ails her, she is behind home plate at the start of every game.

"She is a fifth year starter and she is honestly as good as anyone we have ever had here," said Harrison Head Coach Dean Marino. "Two years ago, as a sophomore, she struggled a little bit. But now Gigi is phenomenal, nobody even runs on her anymore. Some teams tried to run on her last year, but after the fourth or fifth game no one even tried to challenge her at all. When you can take the running game away from some of these teams it is a major impact on the game."

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Last season LoDolce was named to the All-Section team as a catcher. Offensively, she batted cleanup and had a batting average of .366. She was also among the team leaders in runs batted in. Defensively, she was stellar; throwing out 93 percent of would-be base stealers and only allowing two passed balls the entire season.

As I sat in on practice a few weeks ago, I saw LoDolce working just as hard, if not harder, than anyone else on the team. She was treating the simplest drills like they were the most crucial plays of a championship game and she was barking instructions out to teammates for the entire practice. She understands that, although she has personal goals for her own career statistics at Harrison, there will be something missing without the ultimate team goal.

Looking at this season, LoDolce and the Huskies are looking to finish with a win in the state championship game. But, as a fifth-year starter, LoDolce understands that in order to do that the team will have beat their old rival, Pearl River.

"Every year we lose to them in the section," LoDolce said. "But it will not happen again this year, it's my senior year and I want to go out on top."

Harrison will surely miss LoDolce behind the plate next year, but she will not be far away. She has already accepted an athletic scholarship to Saint Thomas Aquinas College in Sparkill, New York. LoDolce knows that the college game is different, and more competitive, but she has already been told that the starting catching job is hers to lose.

Gigi LoDolce is an obvious choice for athlete of the week any week of the spring season. She may not always grab the headlines, but she is clearly the heart of one of the best teams in state.

Best of luck and continued success Gigi LoDolce, Harrison Patch's athlete of the week for the week of March 14 - 20.

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