FROM: Dave Woody
Re: Crusaderette Softball
This is my 8th year as head coach, having
previously served as assistant since 1993.
Christi Flanagan is in her 6th year as
my assistant coach.
Last year, we finished with a record of 7-14,
losing to Wirt County in the Sectional Finals. That was our second
straight loss to them in the Sectional Finals, after 4 years of victories.
We're not satisfied with that result.
This is a very young team, but one that has some experience
in summer leagues (for a change). Though we only have one Senior,
we have 6 starters back from last year, and some new Sophomores and Freshmen
who will contribute immediately.
Key Losses:
Cheryl Woody, P/1B ~ Had all 7 pitching victories
and was a positive team leader.
Whitney Golden, C/CF ~ Leading hitter and top RBI
producer, excellent handler of Pitchers
Meghan Hanlon, IF ~ Tied for lead in RBI, good Avg.,
strong arm
Angela Hattman, 3B ~ Scored most Runs, led in Walks
and Stolen Bases
Anne Matthews, OF ~ Solid hitter with key RBIs in
Tournament
Likely Varsity Lineup:
[arranged like a depth chart, the one in bold is
likely to be the starter ~ since we're doing Calculus with this team, this
is likely to change daily for awhile]
P - Jessie Collins, Stephany Windland, Veronica Lech,
Elizabeth Slone, Danielle Carpenter, Mandy Bunting
C - Megan Schilling, Jessie Collins, Ashley Frasure
1B - Stephany Windland, Katie Ferguson, Jessica Bickert, Courtney
Voshel
2B - Jessica Bickert, Veronica Lech, Ashley Frasure, Kendra
Criss, Ruth Powderly, Liz Slone
SS - Jessie Collins, Stephany Windland, Veronica Lech, Ashley
Frasure
3B - Katie Ferguson, Ashley Frasure, Courtney Voshel
LF - Katie Ferguson, Ashley Frasure, Megan Schilling
CF - Danielle Carpenter, Katie Ferguson, Megan Schilling
RF - Jessica Bickert, Liz Slone, Kendra Criss, Ruth Powderly,
Mandy Bunting, Courtney Voshel
ROSTER
Seniors
Katie Ferguson, 1B/3B/OF ~ Making
a solid effort to lead the team every day and be a good example to the
younger players. Is working out at several new positions, and is
striving to do the best she possibly can at all of them. Has shown
ability in the past, and may finally come into her own this season.
Juniors
Jessica Collins, P/SS/C/CF ~ Started
every Varsity game the last two years, and is thoroughly capable of starting
at any position. Unfortunately, I can only play her in one spot at
a time. Is our #1 Pitcher in terms of experience and progress, so
will get the toughest assignments right now. Our defense would be
better if she could play Short full-time. Lifetime .257 Avg. with
over .390 On Base Pct. Has 22 steals and was 3rd in Total Bases last
year. Playing very hard every day, trying to push herself
to new limits.
Jessica Bickert, 2B/1B/OF ~ Has a
great eye at the plate (19 BB last year) and a solid swing (.450 On Base
% last year). With a little more confidence could be a dangerous
batter. Has good speed, having recovered nicely from a broken ankle
in
the 2001 Sectional Semifinal. Good attitude and work ethic.
Responds well to challenges.
Megan Schilling, C/OF/IF ~ Filling
one of our most desperate needs (Catcher). Maintaining a good balance
emotionally, she has a lot to learn about the position, but has good instincts.
Batted only .250 last year after recovering from illness, but had two key
Triples in one Sectional game.
Courtney Voshel, 3B/1B/DH ~ Newcomer
to the program, transfer from Williamstown. Has been ill this spring,
slowing her progress, but has showed the possibility of being a starter.
Swings hard, and can be a competent fielder. Could be the solution
to one of our key problem areas.
Sophomores
Kendra Criss, 2B/OF ~ Got a good bit of
playing time last year at 2B, and improved every time out. Has not
yet showed a lot at the plate, but got good experience in the field, and
should be more confident this time around.
Stephany Windland, 1B/SS/P ~ May not
be able to play her best position due to our other needs, but is making
a positive effort to be a good player and a good leader. Hit .226
last year thanks to a bit of a slump in midseason but still had .322 OBP
and was 4th in RBI. She led the team in putouts, with over 3 times
more than the next player. I expect her to be a more aggressive baserunner
this year, and an important key to our success.
Danielle Carpenter, OF/P ~ Defected
from the Track team last year, and became an important part of our team
by season's end. Excellent fielder with good arm and instincts.
She might be the best Right fielder I've ever seen (3 OF assists last year),
but she'll be playing Center for us. Her hitting needs some work,
but she has a good swing and a chance to be a key contributor.
Rebecca Gray, OF ~ New to the program
this year, she has a strong hitting stroke. Her fielding is improving
daily, and she has a great attitude.
Mandy Bunting, OF/P ~ Also new, she
is converting from slow-pitch, but learns quickly. She is another
potentially good hitter, who needs some experience.
Allison Zucker, OF ~ Also new, and
another delightful addition to our family. Learns something new every
day, works hard to improve, and has a great attitude.
Mackenzie Bango, Statistician ~ an
example of the true team player, who wants to be involved with the team
and contribute the most she possibly can. Will do anything she can
to make this team better.
Freshmen
Veronica Lech, P/IF ~ One of the key
young contributors on this squad. Best Freshman Pitcher we've had
in a long time, but needs to develop confidence in her abilities.
Fluid and artistic in the field, she will start at one of the Infield slots.
Elizabeth Slone, OF/2B/P ~ Another
experienced Freshman, her summer playing seems to have helped her confidence.
Has a serious desire to be an impact player, and probably will be.
Working hard on her fundamentals, she is also making progress as a Pitcher.
Ashley Frasure, C/IF/OF ~ Yet another
key to our success this year. A very talented young lady who can
play many positions. Has excellent glove skills and a solid bat.
Seems determined to do well and be a contributor.
Sarah Dakesian, OF ~ Wonderful addition
to our family. Has a lot to learn, but has an excellent attitude,
and is always smiling. Will be an important part of our team spirit.
Ruth Powderly, OF/2B ~ Has excellent
defensive fundamentals. Claims this is her first year ever to play,
but does many things quite well. Learns something new every day,
and has some natural ability.
OUTLOOK
This is obviously a VERY young team, yet one that
has some experience with Softball. The younger girls are going to
have to contribute immediately for our team to be a success, and I love
the attitude with which they are approaching this challenge. We have
a lot to learn about the nuances of the game,
This is the best all-around corps of pitchers we
have ever had, which is going to create good competition and provide us
with many options and some depth. The girls are working hard at improving
their skills, and learning new techniques to help them be more accurate.
This could develop into a strength for this team.
Our hitting will be tested by good pitchers on our
schedule, but the girls seem to have a positive attitude about attacking
the ball and being confident. We seem to have some poise in this
area from our younger girls, so that should serve as an aid to strengthening
this skill. Our returning hitters averaged .205 last year, so improvement
in this area is imperative if we are to have a decent year. We are
working on becoming more aggressive at the plate. We were so patient
last year that we drew many Walks, but were often not prepared to hit a
good pitch when we finally got one. I couldn't count the number of
times that we had runners in scoring position and then could not get them
home because we were overly patient.
Baserunning is an area we will have to work on strenuously,
since our inexperience will make it difficult for us to learn all the major
requirements one at a time. Since this group is both positive and
attentive, they do a good job of trying to put new skills into action as
soon as they learn them. I think they'll get the nuances, but how
much time it takes and how many mistakes we have along the way are likely
to influence our success.
As always, I think our defense will eventually become
a major strength for this team. We have a number of girls who can
field the ball cleanly and most of them throw well. Finding the very
best spot for each girl to fit into may require some higher-level Mathematics,
but these things usually sort themselves out as the season progresses.
Best of all, I think, will be the teamwork.
Every girl on this team has had something good to say about her teammates
already this season. Every practice has a lot of encouragement and
support coming to every player from her teammates. Most of these
girls have a very positive attitude about themselves and the team, and
most are quick with a smile or a funny comment. I think it will be
a very enjoyable group to work with, and one that may be more successful
than people would expect us to be.