Sports
Coachella Valley Softball on a Heater this Season, remain Undefeated in Desert Valley League
The Lady Arabs are having an all-time season as they sport a perfect record in the Desert Valley League. They’re led by longtime softball Head Coach Paul Salow, who’s been with the program since 1994.
"Well, I love it. I love coaching. This is my 42nd year of high school sports. Enjoy taking the girls on trips and letting them experience life outside of the Coachella Valley and I love the game of softball, and you know, just keep coming back," says Coach Salow, nearing a milestone of coaching here in the desert.
They’re boasting a talented roaster led by a standout senior in the circle, Jolene Miramontes. She leads the state with 4 No-Hitters this season and tossed an impressive 151 strikeouts on the year with 2 more games left.
"He’s been an awesome coach all my four years that I’ve been on varsity. I wouldn’t have any other coach to you know to coach me on my high school career."
But it’s not just the upperclassmen making waves, Freshman Victoria Guzman is already turning heads at the national level.
Victoria says, the team and staff hold her accountable and help her grow at Coachella Valley High.
"Coming into CV, I wasn’t expecting it to be like, as good as it was. But as soon as I got here, I really liked my coaching staff. They also helped me just improve and they just make me a great player."
Coach Salow says, "Well, you gotta get some talent in each year. And this year, we got a couple of new girls. Vickie has been dynamic. She’s really brought a spark to us that we think we were lacking last year even though we had a good year last year. Still, Vicki has really brought that dynamic softball player to our team."
Victoria is a lethal threat when up to bat and on base, she currently leads the Golden State in Runs (56) which lands her top 15 in the nation. She’ also top 10 in California when it comes to stolen bases.
But sky is the limit for Victoria and the rest of the team.
"My goals are to just keep getting better and just keep producing. I want to break records. And also I just want to win DVL t get as far as we can. I’m just glad I can help out my team as much as I could [this season]."
And with a big game at the end of the season with the also DVL undefeated Indio Lady Rajahs, Coach Salow says, they’re just trying to take it one game at a time.
"We’re not looking too far ahead. We know they’re there. We’re just trying to play the best we can and be ready to go. We’ve been playing really good lately or we’re just trying to stay focused and play really good softball. You know, you look at the end of the rainbow and say you want to be League champions and then you want to go to the playoffs? and you want to try to win a couple games in the playoffs . So we just keep playing and keep the ball moving as long as we can."
By: Talialaina Letoi
April 20, 2023