After facing weeks of inside practices, delayed and postponed games the Lake Washington softball team is ready to play. The young team has taken on a few opponents so far this season, but are looking for a longer, more regular stretch of games.

“We’re a young team, we’ve gotten a lot better since day one,” said first year head coach Troy Hennum. “We started out a little slow because of being inside quite a bit. We’ve gotten a lot better.”

Part of that slow start can be blamed on the weather, forcing teams across the league to begin their season inside, which is no substitute for the real thing.

“Eight out of our first 10 practices were inside and you’re so limited on what you can do in there so that set us back,” said Hennum. But the team is adapting quickly, beating Mercer Island 8-1, and would have taken down Interlake, save for a late comeback by the Saints.

“We’re really young, we start about three sophomores and four juniors – we’ve got two seniors. We have a bright future,” said the coach. Hennum, who has coached baseball and football, said he was looking for a way to switch into the softball world when the spot with the Kangs opened up.

“When I heard it was open, I had wanted to make the switch for a while and this seemed like the best way to get in. Its been a lot of fun. It’s a really good group of girls,” he said.

Hennum said the team is already seeing good things in pitching, with three players who can take the mound. Another has been shortstop Whitney Dunlap, said Hennum. After making the switch from first base to short stop, Hennum said, her fielding has been near perfect. With the young team, Hennum said, there are places like hitting they are still working out.

“Our hitting needs to come along,” he said. “We have potential, we just haven’t put it together yet. That’s one thing we’ve been struggling with.”

As the team gets its hitting rhythm figured out, they aren’t lacking in chemistry, said Bethany Bacon, who plays third base and pitches.

“This year for team goals we really focused on first becoming a cohesive group and working really well with each other,” she said. “Now that’s finally coming together and we can really pick it up on the field and I think that’s going really well.”

Teammate Dunlap agreed, “It’s been really fun. We lost some people last year, but this year it’s been good.”

Hennum said he felt like the team has picked up the pace during practice, using the most of their time that they can get outside. He’s apart of an entirely new coaching staff, including Mike Watson and Bethany Newcomb.

“We’re excited about the future,” he said. The current short term future includes the rest of the team’s league schedule, which boasts some of the toughest competition in the state.

“I keep track of all the leagues and it’s by far the toughest,” said Hennum of the KingCo group. He said to be successful it takes staying in the game, no matter what.

“(You have to work on) staying competitive in every game and giving yourself a chance to win is the biggest thing. We struggled to do that in the first few games, but we’re starting to get better,” said Hennum.

But the Kangs hope they cane get out of just league games and into the post season. Bacon and Dunlap both said they hope to make a run to state.

“I think it’s going to take us on the same track we are now. We need to pick it up and do really well in our games. I think that’s going really well and if we stay on this track and with our team chemistry I think that is a good recipe for a winning team,” said Bacon.

The Kangs will take on Mount Si on Tuesday, April 19 at Crestwood Field, near Kirkland Junior High, and travel to Mercer Island on April 21.