VIRGINIA BEACH, VA (WTKR)- Many of Virginia Wesleyan softball's coaches and players knew the Marlins would have a good team entering the 2026 campaign.
But this good?
"I don't think anybody can expect that," said VWU head coach Brandon Elliott of his team's 50-0 record. "To sit here and say 'you expect this or expect that,' no. We expected to be here. We expected to be in the World Series. With the record, no, because you're supposed to lose games, but at this point, why lose now?"
"At the end of the day, that's something I try not to think about," senior catcher and third baseman Olivia Knight added. "Sometimes I have to take a step back and realize wow, we're really good."
Really good is one way to describe it. Exceptional might be another, but falling short of claiming the national championship during the course of the next week-plus might put a damper on that success. Not only are the Marlins 50-0, but they lead the country in both batting average (.405) and ERA (0.61). That's a recipe for success and one they hope to take with them to Salem this week.
"Last year it was really disappointing not to be number one," Knight pointed out. "This year we've been grinding everything out, everything matters. One of our mottoes this year is 'whatever it takes.'"
"There's a ton of experience here," added Elliott. "Just trying to keep them loose and enjoy their time. We get an extra week with them so enjoy our time together."
The head coach is right. Plenty of Virginia Wesleyan's players have played in the World Series. The Marlins are now part of the final eight teams for the third consecutive season and fell two wins short of bringing the national title back to Virginia Beach last year. Being familiar with that stage is something they hope will help them finish the job in 2026.
"It's certainly an advantage," Elliott noted. "There's a lot of things that go into it and there's a lot of meetings. There's a lot that happens on the practice day, a lot of rules and regulations and travel and all that and the advantage is that when you've been there before, you're used to doing those things."
"We're a veteran team," pointed out Knight. "The last three years I've been here, we've made it to the World Series so it's definitely blessing for sure and it's nice having that experience, but it's also nice playing at Salem because we've been there."
Virginia Wesleyan opens up with Rowan on Thursday at 11 a.m. The Marlins have three national crowns to their name (2017, 2018, 2021) and now look to claim number four with a veteran group that is only missing that championship.
"It's a dream," Knight smiled. "It would mean absolutely everything. We've worked so hard."
"That's our job as coaches, for each group to experience something exceptional," added Elliott. "It would be huge for me, selfishly, just to see them enjoy that and them have that joy."
Click here to see how we use AI at WTKR News 3.
