Had they played last year, Timoney Lamplugh would have been one of eight starters returning.
This year, she’s the only returning starter back, and she’s doing her best to be the leader of a young but talented team.
Lamplugh is a senior catcher on the Nazareth Academy High School softball team, and she knows that her younger teammates can use a little help when needed.
Being a leader comes naturally to her, but she also knows what it’s like to be the new girl on the team. She doesn’t have to go back to freshman year to remember that, either.
“We needed a goalie for soccer and Mr. (Dan) Bradley asked me to give it a try, play the indoor season and see what happens,” said Lamplugh, who lives in Rhawnhurst. “It was something different. I was scared when I tried it, but my sister (Catherine) was a freshman, so I wanted to play with her.”
She became the starter for the fall and turned in a strong season.
“I had a blast. I’m pretty good at giving things my all, and hustling,” she said. “I wasn’t afraid to dive or make insane moves. I just tried my best and it was great. We had a really fun season.
“I also played because I missed playing sports. I play basketball and softball, and softball was off. I was ready to play something. I was just sitting home hoping to play anything, so when the season came around, I really wanted to try it.”
Now she’s not the new kid on the block.
Now she’s the one everyone turns to for advice or even a lift.
As a catcher, Lamplugh has been a leader since she started playing the position at Nazareth. The team needed a catcher, so Lamplugh, who has played everywhere on the diamond outside of the circle, volunteered to get behind the plate. Now she can’t see herself playing any other position.
“I like playing everywhere, but catcher is definitely perfect for me,” Lamplugh said. “I like it. You have to be a leader. It’s always the leader of the team in a lot of ways because you’re looking at everyone. You see the whole field and you have to know what’s going on. You have to be loud and let everyone know what’s going on.”
So far, she’s more than doing her job.
She’s hitting .607 with 17 hits, a home run, five doubles and 15 RBIs for the Pandas, who are 5-4 on the season.
It’s not where the Pandas were in 2019 when they won the Catholic Academies League, but they’re playing well against some of the top teams in the area.
“It will be tough to win the league, but we’re getting better, and playing better,” Lamplugh said. “The players who haven’t played varsity before are doing really well. They’re getting better. It’s been a lot of fun.
“I was really upset when COVID happened because I was home thinking ‘what to do?’ But it was hard because we had so many players back, we could have had a great year. But I’m really happy with how we’re playing. I think we’re doing pretty well.”
Lamplugh is happy she’s one of the players the younger teammates turn to when help is needed.
The three-sport athlete, who also was a starting forward on the basketball team, gives a lot of credit to her teammates, and she also credits her coaches with making her the player she is.
“I have a great relationship with all of my coaches, they’re all great,” Lamplugh said. “(Softball coach Danielle Vittitow) has been such a role model, she scouted me out at a basketball game even though she has nothing to do with basketball, and I already was considering Naz. I loved her. She’s been such a great coach. It’s amazing how when you play for so long and you think you know so much, how much she teaches you. She explains everything. She’s such a good coach. She’s a great coach and the leader I’m trying to be. I emulate her. Just a great person.
“Coach Bradley is great, I see him around school all the time. He always looks after us. He was one of the reasons I played soccer. He helped me so much. And (Mary Kate Magagna) is such a sweetheart. I don’t see her as much, but she’ll always check in with us and make sure we’re doing well. She’s a great coach, too. I’ve been lucky. Nazareth has so many great people who really care.”
One will graduate in a few months.
Lamplugh has done it all at Nazareth. She in the chorus, starred in the school play prior to this year, is the president of the Panda Irish Club, a secretary in Athletes Helping Athletes and a member of the National Honor Society with her 4.1 grade point average. Next year, she’ll take all those talents to the University of South Carolina, where she’ll major in biochemistry.
“I’ve always been interested in biology and chemistry, they’re my favorite subjects at Naz,” Lamplugh said. “I don’t know why, but dissecting the frog was my favorite thing. I just love to experiment with things. I don’t know what I want to do after that, we’ll see where it takes me. I have ideas, maybe work in a lab or maybe take it to med school.
“I don’t know if I’ll play softball. I wasn’t going to, but a lot of people told me I should walk on. I don’t know what I’ll do. It might be a lot with biochem. But I definitely think I’ll do something. Maybe play intramurals if I don’t try out.”
She does plan on soaking up all the fun this year she can have.
“I love Naz, I love everything about it,” Lamplugh said. “I’ll definitely miss it. I love my teammates. They definitely crack me up. They’re great people. We have fun together. I’ll miss that.”
