Season Outlook: 2025 Rye Girls Varsity Softball Team

Season Outlook is a series where MyRye.com asks every varsity coach about the season ahead. Today, we learn about the Rye Girls Varsity Softball Team with 20-year veteran Head Coach Alex Tejera.

A newly renovated field brings excitement and anticipation to the Rye Girls Varsity Softball Team ahead of the 2025 season. The stadium looks completely brand new, including a fresh scoreboard, after significant upgrades over the offseason. The team is also a bit new heading into the spring season.

Rye lost six key seniors from their 6-14-1 team from one year ago, but the youth in the core that remains all gained valuable experience behind those six last spring. “We only have one senior, and the juniors and sophomores all received valuable experience last year that will help them this year,” Tejera told MyRye.com prior to the season. “We are hoping that the younger players continue to grow and the upperclassmen lead us to a successful season.”

Three of those upperclassmen will serve as captains for Tejera, including the only senior, Ava Cross. Juniors Ava Rollano and Tessa Labowitz will also lead as captains. Those three plus Penelope Gilmore will be key to the Garnets’ success. Behind them, Caroline Joyce, Jillian DeSanto, Gabby McGuire, Rosie Zicherman and Clara Meszkat will assume larger roles than last year. The latter five “All gained valuable experience last year as freshmen that will help them grow and develop,” Tejera said of his budding sophomore class.

Rye was scheduled to kick off their league season on March, but opening day was cancelled (as of Sunday 3/23). The Garnets played their first preseason scrimmage on Monday, March 24th, with their sights now set on Tuesday, April 1st – a road contest at Nyack. Their schedule includes several key contests which Tejera and his group are looking forward to: the Westlake tournament on April 26th; hosting Harrison on May 5; and visiting Harrison to close the regular season on May 17th. “The Harrison games are always fun,” Tejera told MyRye.com. “They are the defending Section Champions, so those games will be a challenge for us.”

Catch the Garnets in action on April 1st for the season opener at 4:30pm and two days later (Thursday, April 3rd at 5:00pm) for the home opener.