Maeve Foley has played several sports throughout her life, and she’s taken away something valuable by participating in each one of them. As a member of the Old Saybrook softball team, Maeve gave the Rams just as much as she received during the past four seasons.

Maeve competed in softball, swimming, basketball, and field hockey while growing up. After primarily playing third base, she made the move to second base as a freshman on Old Saybrook’s varsity squad.

Maeve recently completed her career at Old Saybrook by leading the Rams as a senior captain this spring. Maeve had a huge season at the plate that saw her post a .512 batting average to go with a .744 slugging percentage and 16 RBI on her way to earning All-Shoreline Conference First Team honors and a spot in the Senior All-Star Game.

She also guided a young club on a late playoff push that culminated with Old Saybrook qualifying for the both Shoreline Conference Tournament and the Class S State Tournament.

“Sports have been an outlet for me. It makes me feel like I’m a part of something, and I’ve made a lot of friends through them,” says Maeve. “Swimming is more of an individual sport, so it helped me gain confidence and mature as a person in life. Softball gave me the closest bonds with my friends. I had really special teammates here.”

Maeve became a key component of Old Saybrook’s infield while patrolling second base. Maeve had a lot to learn about the varsity ranks when she stepped into that position as a freshman, but the early experience proved huge in shaping her leadership skills.

“I never played second before freshman year. I was thrown out there with older teammates, but I felt equal to them. I felt like I was important and had a job to do,” Maeve says. “Now, the position has helped me thrive as a captain, because it’s right in the middle, and you can communicate with everyone. Second is a position not talked about too much, but it’s an important one where you can be involved in every play.”

Throughout her high school career, Maeve learned an important lesson about shaking it off if she made a mistake. This spring, Maeve and fellow senior captain Sarah Howley made sure they imparted that advice to the Rams’ future generation of players.

“When I was younger, I would get mad at myself after mistakes, but I matured and accepted that you need to move on and focus on the next play,” says Maeve. “I’ve helped everyone realize that it does hurt to make a mistake, but you have to move on to the next play. Sarah and I were good with showing the other girls how to be mentally tough.”

Head Coach Katelyn Livingston says that Maeve led Old Saybrook with her performance on all ends of the field. Livingston adds that Maeve is also an excellent mentor in the dugout.

“Maeve has done an unbelievable job leading the team with her heads-up defensive plays and key hits, as well with the relationships that she has built with each and every one of her teammates,” Livingston says. “Maeve is an extension of the coaching staff. She always has something to contribute to the postgame discussions, highlighting the team’s strengths and areas of weakness. Maeve has been an absolute pleasure to coach, and she will be missed tremendously by her coaches and teammates.”

Maeve believes that a team’s achievements go beyond where that squad winds up in the standings. Maeve says the most important thing is that everyone always brings their A-game, while creating relationships on the field every day.

“What’s talked about the most in sports are wins and losses, but softball taught me that it’s about who played with the most heart and left it all out there. Sometimes that team wins, and sometimes it loses,” says Maeve. “I’ll remember the bonds we made throughout my four years that will hopefully stay with me the rest of my life. Softball has been my favorite memory from high school by far.”