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03/31/2019 12:00 AMAngelina Ramada feels fortunate that she’s going to be taking the field for the North Branford softball team this spring. A few months ago, Angelina suffered a knee injury that abruptly ended her senior season with the girls’ basketball squad. The good news is that Angelina was recently cleared to resume athletic activities, and she’s excited to help the T-Birds begin their quest for a fourth straight Shoreline Conference title.
“I just got cleared, so I’ve been doing all the drills. It’s really exciting and, hopefully, I can help lead the team to success this year,” Angelina says. “My fellow seniors are excited to win the Shoreline Conference again and, hopefully, get to states and win this year. I can’t wait to be back.”
Angelina says that dealing with her injury was a difficult experience, especially since she enjoyed leading North Branford on the court. However, the senior captain continued to serve as a leader by constantly bringing a positive attitude to the sidelines. Angelina received the team’s Desire and Dedication Award for her efforts.
“I was still a part of the team. I was at every game and every practice as if I never left, except for playing,” says Angelina. “Being a captain is very important, and I understand the role of being a leader. It’s great, because you have people that look up to you, and you have to be a role model and set a good example and push the team to do its best.”
Head Coach Courtney Manciero knows how important it was for her team to have Angelina’s presence in the gym on a daily basis. Manciero appreciates that Angelina took her role as a captain so seriously and stayed dedicated to the T-Birds after she got injured.
“Angelina showed what good leadership is by remaining committed to the team and putting the same amount of hours in that her teammates who were playing were expected to put in,” Manciero says. “We were disappointed that she couldn’t return, since she had made such an impact on the court at the start of the season. Every day, she would tell me how badly she wanted to play again and how frustrating it was to sit there and not be able to help her teammates more.”
On the softball field, Angelina has a career batting average of .323 to go with 31 RBI and 42 runs scored for Head Coach Nick DeLizio’s club. While she certainly produces at the plate, Angelina believes that her biggest strength is patrolling the pasture out in center field.
“My biggest skill is tracking the ball. That’s what I’m best known for,” Angelina says. “Coach is confident that I can get to any ball.”
After she graduates from North Branford, Angelina will attend Albertus Magnus College and play for the Falcons’ softball squad. Angelina’s opportunity to continue her career in college came about when she met Albertus Head Coach Ed Emielita while playing travel ball with the CT Eliminators.
“This summer, I went to a couple of college showcases, and the Albertus coach was there. I decided I wanted to stay close to home, so I shook coach’s hand, introduced myself, and that’s where it started,” says Angelina. “I’m committed to play there and going to major in business. I’m very excited.”