For the O'Connell softball team, pregame bus rides are silent. Even for 70-mile rides from Arlington to Southern Maryland, the no-talking rule applies.

"We take time before the game to meditate and think about what we need to do as a team or individually," senior Leah Hammes said. "It's an O'Connell tradition."

What's also tradition is domination on the field. After a quiet ride, loud bats and a powerful pitching performance propelled the Knights to an early lead on their way to an 8-1 win Thursday over St. Mary's Ryken. Junior pitcher Kathryn Sandercock struck out 12 batters while senior Patty Maye Ohanian and sophomore Caitlin Jorae each picked up three hits as O'Connell won a rematch of last season's Washington Catholic Athletic Conference final.

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