Published May 31, 2026
By JOHANNA MELTON
Hard-working and dominant on the mound, freshman pitcher Olivia Tringali has dedicated countless hours to developing her pitching and batting prowess and has become the fourth person in Carmel High School history to strike out at least 200 batters in a season, leading her team to its first league title in nine years.
Tringali is number one in the three-county area for wins, innings pitched, strikeouts and shutouts with an ERA of 1.44. She had a 18-5 record, 208 strikeouts, and pitched 7 shutouts this season, sustaining a streak of 36 consecutive shutout innings going into CCS.
Olivia Tringali maintains a positive attitude on and off the field, constantly uplifting her teammates and friends. courtesy of OLIVIA TRINGALI
“She has fun playing, but she also takes it very seriously,” says Carmel coach Mike Palshaw. “As a pitcher, she just sets the tone and the pace of the game.”
Before joining the high school team, Tringali started playing with club teams such as the Mavericks, located in Carmel; later going to the Storm, located in Salinas; and now suiting up for the Suncats – Jimenez, a competitive fastpitch softball travel team based in Gilroy. She also juggles private lessons after near daily practices for the high school team.
“It’s definitely harder to get my work done when I’m doing travel,” says Tringali. “I’m going up there and coming home and doing homework on the road.”
The combined load of school, the CHS team and travel teams can be challenging, but the honor student has learned to stay on top of everything and manage multiple responsibilities, and the abundance of time she has invested in softball outside of CHS helped earn her a spot on the varsity team as a freshman.
“I really like our team,” says Tringali. “Everyone is always positive and picking each other up, and there’s no negativity.”
Her main motivation when it comes to softball is her end goal of attending college for the sport. While this objective requires her to take softball more seriously than others who may simply play it for fun, she still maintains a positive attitude and never fails to be a supportive teammate.
Olivia Tringali aims to continue playing softball in college. courtesy of OLIVIA TRINGALI
“My favorite thing about being on a team with Liv is that whenever I make a mistake she’s always there to let me know that I’ll get it next time,” says sophomore catcher Avery Houston. “She’s always hyping me up, and she’s never down on herself.”`
Despite being known for her stellar pitching, Tringali is also a talented batter, leading her team in doubles, triples and home runs.
Tringali has been playing softball since second grade, when she joined the Carmel Community Girls Softball league. When she showed up to what she thought was her first team practice, she instead ended up attending a pitching clinic, which kicked off her long-term love for the position.
“There’s no stress when I’m in the circle because it’s like I’m controlling the game,” says Tringali.
When she isn’t pitching, Tringali is on horseback, participating in equestrian eventing.
Through passion, skill and time management, Olivia Tringali is both a stellar teammate and player, with a highly successful softball career already in the works.
