Seven months of rigorous rehab on her knee led Maddie Coupal to the leadoff spot for Bishop Feehan softball

Boston Globe

30-04-2025

It represented a massive loss for the Shamrocks last season, as Coupal watched her teammates and friends from the sidelines. This year, the senior shortstop, committed to play for Boston University, leads off and has reinvigorated
Through her first 29 at-bats, Coupal has hammered out a .345 average, 17 runs, five home runs, and eight RBIs and serves as one of the best defensive shortstops in the state.
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'She's, if not the best, one of the best that I've ever coached in my near-20 years,' remarked Bishop Feehan coach
Bill Milot
.
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Coupal, a North Attleboro resident, received surgery on Dec. 12, 2023. For the first week post-reconstruction, she was restricted to the couch.
'It's very difficult, honestly,' she reflected. 'It's pretty hard mentally. You need to keep reminding yourself to take it day-by-day. It's challenging, but I learned a lot . . . It made me stronger, for sure.'
Maddie Coupal (5) spent last season watching from the sidelines as she rehabbed a torn ACL.
Brett Phelps for The Boston Globe
The ensuing couple of months consisted going to physical therapy three times a week. At first, exercises were designed to bend the knee a couple of degrees. Eventually, she could fully bend and straighten it.
A step in the right direction, but not the final battle.
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Next came running. Then cutting. Then picking back up softball activities. Many softball drills feature kneeling, which induced a great deal of pain. Coupal retrained her body and hardened her mind. Building up stamina is one thing — confidence is another.
Can I still trust my knee?
It's not easy to be brave, exactly what's necessary to overcome the mental hurdles associated with a debilitating injury. It took Coupal seven months to regain her previous form.
'I learned that you have to be as tough as you can,' she said. 'Going through an injury like that, being away from softball for so long, it made me more grateful to be able to play. It's a good reminder to think about that and have to come back from that, to reset from that perspective. When I fail, it helps me reset.'
Maddie Coupal touches the bag as the Archbishop Williams third baseman scoops up the ball.
Brett Phelps for The Boston Globe
Coupal's stance features a wide base, her hands high and tight to her head. By constricting the zone with plenty of knee bend, she can explode through the ball.
In the third inning of a 10-2 victory against Archbishop Williams, Coupal laced a ground ball through the left side that reached the outfield before the infielders could take two steps.
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In the bottom of the fifth, Coupal shuffled three paces to her left, collected a hot ground ball, and in one motion, fired sidearm to first base. It was textbook, exactly how a coach would teach the play.
Nine out of 10 times, that's a base hit — or at least eats up the shortstop. For Coupal, it was routine.
'If you watch her play, it's another level,' said Milot. 'She's playing at another level than anyone else on the field. She's so smooth going to the ball, it's incredible. She knows the game so well.'
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The Bishop Feehan roster features nine seniors.
Brett Phelps for The Boston Globe
On a roster with nine seniors, Coupal's ability and mental toughness earned her the respect of her teammates.
'They see her play and they are in awe,' said Milot.
Senior hurler
Mylee Ramer
, a
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Buttressing Coupal and Ramer, senior Bella Silva hits the cover off the ball, and senior
Gwen Camara
, senior
Caitlyn Deveney
, and freshman
Zoey Pereira
serve as key contributors.
The sky's the limit for the rest of a remarkable season.
'It's really, really special to me,' said Coupal. 'We have a great group of girls and it's really fun playing with them. The team has great chemistry.'
Bishop Feehan shortstop Maddie Coupal is happy that she's not relegated to the dugout this season.
Brett Phelps for The Boston Globe
Extra bases
In a busy vacation week, Tewksbury (7-3) rattled off four straight wins, vaulting the Redmen to the top of the Merrimack Valley Division 2 standings.
With wins over
'We just dug deep [during the week],' said first-year coach
Kirsten Dick
cq (Tewksbury '16). 'We were down to [Wilmington], and we were just like, 'What are we doing? We're not playing our game.' And then a switch flipped for us.'
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Pitcher
Gabby Davis
was sensational, starting and finishing every game during the win streak.
'She saw that the girls were making plays behind her, and she got more confidence to throw the ball how she can throw,' Dick added. 'She knew the team behind her was going to make the plays they needed to.'
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The highlight of the week, though, was an 11-inning victory over Chelmsford in which Tewksbury ralled from five runs down and walk it off on a sacrifice fly from
Sophia Cappiello
.
'Most teams might say, 'Oh well, fifth inning, what are we to do?' But we never gave up,' Dick said. 'We never stopped believing, pushed through, worked through good at-bats. It was the longest game ever, but definitely well worth it.'
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▪ It was a week of milestones across the circuit, headlined by Triton's
Emma Penniman
collecting her 600th career strikeout.
'She's been a godsend,' coach
Alan Noyes
said after Monday's achievement.
Also picking up career marks were Dighton-Rehoboth's
Camryn Cloonan
and Old Colony's
Kayleigh deSousa
, who each notched their 100th career hits.
Games to watch
Wednesday, No. 14 Apponequet at No. 8 Joseph Case, 4 p.m.
– Apponequet's Reese Taylor and Case's Lila Alvarez make for a duel of flamethrowers in the circle.
Wednesday, No. 2 King Philip at No. 1 Taunton, 6:30 p.m.
– The
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Saturday, No. 4 Dighton-Rehoboth at No. 15 Bridgewater-Raynham, 1 p.m.
– Dighton-Rehoboth cruises into the week riding a five-game win streak, with their only loss coming to No. 1 Taunton.
Monday, Newton North at No. 10 Walpole, 4:30 p.m.
– After falling out of the Globe Top 20 this week, Newton North could prove they belong with a quality win.
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Correspondent Joe Eachus contributed to this story.
Cam Kerry can be reached at