Softball will play a home game against district rival Marcus on April 10 at 1 p.m.

“They are a solid team with a lot of great hitters, which makes them a tough opponent,” senior Rylee Nicholson said. “I’m looking forward to seeing how all of our hard work will pay off. We have high goals for ourselves, so I’m expecting big things from this game.”

Head coach Jason Gwyn said Marcus has a lot of competitive players on their team. They are ranked No. 39 in the state and Hebron is ranked No. 108 according to their number of wins.

“Marcus has always been a tough opponent for us,” Gwyn said. “They are extremely talented. They have some really good athletes and players overall, so they’ve been extremely competitive. I feel like in our district, Hebron and Marcus are the big rivals.”

The team won against Marcus during its first round of district games and is currently ranked third.

“They are a tough opponent, but we are too,” senior Samantha Puente said. “I am looking forward to seeing how we keep our energy and fire in us like we had when we played them last time to continue on to the next game.”

The team focuses on its own strengths while practicing to have a successful game against tough opponents. This year, the team focused on handling situations and executing plays during practice.

“We don’t really change our practice to tailor it toward certain teams,” Gwyn said. “We just need to be really good at the things we do to play well. This year’s team mantra is “Uss vs. us,” so if we can win the game we are playing against ourselves, then we will be in a good position.”

Gwyn hopes to perform well at district, advance to playoffs and excel in the rounds there.

“We just want to finish strong at district,” Gwyn said. “Getting to play in the playoffs is always a goal for us. The last few years, we have gotten into the playoffs, but we would be [eliminated] in the first round, so our goal is to play strong and go more forward in the playoffs.”