LAKEWOOD RANCH, Fla. - When you grow up in Lakewood Ranch, and you play softball, you learn early on about the legacy.

“When I put on the Lakewood Ranch jersey, I always feel like I need to give it my all and play my hardest,” sophomore Cassidy McLellan said, “so that I can really live up to the expectations that were set.”

Expectations are high. The past few years, the Mustangs have inched closer and closer to a state championship, finishing runner-ups in 2019 and poised to take the prize last year.

“We like embrace the pressure,” senior Jillian Herbst said. “We don’t like let it bring us down. I would say it’s exciting, rather than something we get scared about when we’re ranked high.”

Ranked high? How about No. 1 in the nation. That was their ranking last year before Covid shut everything down. And that was their ranking at the start of this season.

“It’s not something that we try to downplay or ignore by any means because it is such an honor.,” Head Coach T.J. Goelz said. “We look at it as a standpoint of we’re relevant. You’re relevant throughout the country. People now know who Lakewood Ranch High School is.”

When you’re a Lakewood Ranch Mustang, you accept the pressure. And you embrace the sense of community. You pay it forward for future players. And because of last year’s lost season, you pay it backwards for the seniors who didn’t get to play.

“It would be just to give back to the girls that couldn’t, so just to basically honor them and be able to make our own legacy,” Herbst said.

Last season was lost, unfinished. This season, Lakewood Ranch has found a greater appreciation for the sport they love. And more importantly, they get a chance to finish.

“They love playing, they love the opportunity,” Goelz said. “They want to keep the tradition  of Lakewood Ranch High School going and more importantly, they want to make their own legacy.”