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A return to normalcy
Just over a year ago, Westfield's Anna Munizza was lying in a heap near her position at third base. After taking a rocketed line drive off her face, she was left with a fractured maxilla bone, or upper jaw.The left side of her face was swollen and discolored for a few weeks, but she quickly returned to the softball field – her jaw still broken. She wore lacrosse goggles and then a clear softball mask to protect her injury, but shed them after a few games.
Munizza is a senior this season and is thoroughly enjoying her last year of high school softball. The Bulldogs are 9-5 overall and 6-2 in the Concorde District. She now plays center field and bats cleanup.
"Everything is gone. I went back and played the second game against Robinson last year and I was fine," said Munizza of her near-serious injury. "And now that I'm in the outfield, I'm not scared at all. Nothing is gonna hurt me out there."
In the field last Friday night against Robinson, Munizza performed well at her new position. She caught a line drive and a fly ball for outs, and fielded two balls in left-center.
Unfortunately for Munizza and her teammates, Robinson pitcher Erin Henning silenced their bats. Westfield was only able to tally four hits and did not draw any walks, leading to the 2-0 defeat.
"We were just having a totally off night," Munizza said. "Our pitching wasn't totally on, our hitting, everyone was popping up. Our hitting wasn't good at all."
After last year's high school season, Munizza rejoined her club team – the Vienna Stars 18 Gold – and got back into her groove on the diamond. Coaches from Mount Olive College in North Carolina saw her play last summer and asked her to come for a tryout. She did, and they offered her a softball scholarship – she signed the papers in November.
Westfield coach Dean Ferrington was asked about the 2008 Bulldogs and how things are going. The team lost some talent to graduation in Allie Heon, Carolyn Jones and Linda Pirro – among others.
"You have kids like Jackie and Frankie Martinez come in, you get Jessie McNamara coming in, Anna is a year older, finally playing the way I thought she should play," Ferrington said. "We can go one through nine and put the ball in play. We didn't tonight. And plus we have some competition ... it's a real good mix of kids. It's fun."
Despite this being a new season, there is a constant reminder of Munizza's injury hovering around the team. In Westfield softball's 2008 program, every senior has a page with photos and fun facts. On the right side of Munizza's page is a photo of her smiling last spring, her left eye swollen and discoloration all around it.
But above that one is a photo of her this season, throwing in a ball from her spot in center field. Back to normal.
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