Softball coach Brian Kolze knows he has a resilient team—one brought even closer together after the disappointment of a positive season that ended prematurely due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis.

The Tigers had arrived in Arizona to play in a March tournament at Grand Canyon College. Many of the players’ parents were to attend. A dinner with President Designate Christopher Callahan was scheduled.

Then came the word that the tournament was canceled. Days later, the NCAA ended all interscholastic sports.

Team Leadership Council member Madeline Domingo ’21 said the Tigers were determined to “band together through the disappointment, even when after we had left campus and returned to our homes.”

Team members are sending each other fun videos each day and plan to have a book club that will last throughout the summer.

“It was bitterly disappointing for the players,” Kolze said in a recent online chat with team supporters. “We were having a very good season (15–10 record). But this group is special. They were not going to let this get the best of them.”