Softball teams seek turn-around seasons in 2018
Waynesburg Central's Sydney Hare touches home plate after hitting a home run against Avonworth in last year's WPIAL Class AAA first-round playoff game on May 15 at Baldwin High School. The Lady Raiders lost to the Antelopes, but will be striving to get back into the postseason in 2018 for the 17th time in the last 21 years.
Holly Tonini
Waynesburg Central catcher Sydney Hare (24) tags a runner out at home plate. Hare was named to the All-Greene County Messenger Softball Diamond Cutters team. (Photo by Holly Tonini)
The 2018 softball season will be a program-defining year for several county teams, and that蘑菇视频 the case for Jefferson-Morgan, Mapletown and Waynesburg Central.
The Lady Rockets and the Lady Maples missed the postseason last year in Section 2-A.
J-M, which had qualified for the playoffs six of the last eight seasons including winning a WPIAL title in 2015, was young and inexperienced in 2017. The Lady Rockets hope those growing pains will translate into more wins this year.
Mapletown is seeking its first playoff berth since 2008 as the Lady Maples will look to battle through some inconsistencies against the upper-echelon teams within the section.
The Lady Raiders did make the WPIAL蘑菇视频 second season last year, but fell to Freeport in the first round in Class AAA. Waynesburg has qualified for the postseason in 16 of the last 20 seasons.
The 2017 campaign was a little Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde for the Lady Raiders.
Waynesburg started the year 8-2 and gave West Greene its only loss of the season with a dramatic come-from-behind 7-6 non-section win on the road. After the hot start, the Lady Raiders went 1-7 in their final eight games.
As in prior seasons, all three teams have had to battle their fair share of cancellations and postponements of games thanks to the cold and rainy weather in the area (and yes, even a couple of inches of snow got in the way earlier this week).
The following are the season previews for Jefferson-Morgan, Mapletown and Waynesburg.
Jefferson-Morgan Lady Rockets
Coach: Rich Rush (2nd year)
2017 Record: 4-11 overall; 3-9 in Section 2-A
Seniors Lost: 2
Section Outlook: Just like last year, Section 2-A will be composed of three of the toughest Class A teams around in West Greene, Carmichaels and Monessen. The fourth place spot is up for grabs between J-M, Mapletown and California. Last season the Lady Rockets鈥� three section wins came against Avella (twice) and California.
Team Outlook: With just two seniors graduated, the Lady Rockets return a fair amount of experience and skill under Rush. Sophomore Caitlyn Dugan returns to the circle and will also be a potent part of the team蘑菇视频 offense. Other key players returning are seniors Krista McCartney and Sadie Fowler, junior Brynn Boyd and sophomore Autumn Gustovich.
Season So Far: J-M only played once last week and it was a thrilling 5-4 victory over non-section foe Fort Cherry last Monday. Dugan picked up the win, registering 15 strikeouts. The Lady Rockets have a full slate of games scheduled this week (weather permitting) at Carmichaels on Wednesday, California at home on Thursday and at Beth-Center today.
Key Section Games: at Mapletown (April 17), Carmichaels (April 19), at Monessen (May 3).
Mapletown Lady Maples
Coach: Jennifer Nesser (1st year)
2017 Record: 6-12 overall; 4-8 in Section 2-A
Seniors Lost: 5
Section Outlook: The Lady Maples finished in fifth place in the section, one game out of a playoff spot. Mapletown went 4-0 against Jefferson-Morgan and Avella, but unfortunately went 0-8 against the top four teams in the section. If the Lady Maples want to advance to the playoffs, they must find a way to beat the established teams within Section 2-A.
Team Outlook: The biggest question mark for Mapletown entering 2018 is starting pitcher and who will replace Abigail McIntire in the circle. The Lady Maples will return a strong core of its offense back, headlined by seniors Makenzie Cree, Macee Chesney, Elise Clark, Taylor Vanata and Sara Chory.
Season So Far: The Lady Maples didn鈥檛 get a chance to play any games last week because of the weather, but will have a busy week with an away game at Avella on Tuesday and home games with Monessen (Thursday) and Hundred (W.Va.) today.
Key Section Games: Carmichaels (April 13), at California (April 18), at Monessen (April 26).
Waynesburg Lady Raiders
Coach: Jim Armstrong (7th year)
2017 Record: 9-9 overall; 4-6 in Section 3-AAA
Seniors Lost: 5
Section Outlook: Waynesburg finished tied for third place last year with McGuffey with a 4-6 mark behind South Park and Southmoreland. After finishing third in the WPIAL, South Park went on an improbable run and won the PIAA title. Consistency will be key for the Lady Raiders this season, as they must be able to beat the weaker teams in order to compete for a playoff spot.
Team Outlook: Despite the departure of five seniors, the Lady Raiders bring a plethora of returning players and a lot of versatility for Armstrong. Leading the list of returnees this spring are seniors Sydney Hare, Lexi Fuqua and Courtney Yuhas, junior Rachel Elsenheimer, and sophomores Jordan Sibert and Paige Rutan.
Season So Far: Waynesburg has one of the highest scoring offenses in the WPIAL, scoring 49 runs in their first three games. The Lady Raiders have wins over St. John Villa, of New York (10-7), and California (24-1 in three innings). Their lone loss came against Plainfield South, of Illinois, in a 20-15 slugfest down at Pigeon Forge (Tenn.). Waynesburg is tentatively set to open up the section this week at Southmoreland on Tuesday and home against Brownsville on Thursday.
Key Section Games: at McGuffey (April 13), Southmoreland (April 19), South Park (April 26).