Info on the 2005 team TO: Steve Hemmelgarn

FROM: Dave Woody

Re: Crusaderette Softball 2005 ~ pick out whatever you can use.  (Updated 3/17/05)

    This is my 10th year as head coach, having previously served as assistant since 1993.
    Christi Harris is in her 8th year as my assistant coach, having previously played at PCHS.
    Last year, we finished with a record of  7-14, losing to Williamstown in the Sectional Finals.  Though we lost 3 key players from that team, several girls on this squad learned a great deal from that experience, and will be important to our success this season. 
   This team is younger overall than last year's squad, but has a decent amount of experience in terms of playing time.  We are hopeful that the right combination of youthfulness, talent, and experience will give us the opportunity to have more success than we did last year.

Key Losses:
    Jessie Collins ended the season with a .302 batting average, and a 3-7 record as Pitcher.  Her softball savvy and enthusiasm will be greatly missed.
    Megan Schilling was our starting Catcher, and led our Seniors with a .323 average.
    Jessica Bickert started at 2nd Base and batted .307.
    The combination of these three girls provided excellent on-field leadership, and each of them had their best season at the plate.  It will be very difficult to replace their determination, humor, and capability.
    The preseason loss of Courtney Voshel was absorbed last year, and nonreturning Seniors Rebecca Gray and Sarah Bell will impact this year's team.

<>Likely Varsity Lineup:
    [arranged similar to a depth chart, the one in bold is likely to be the starter if we play today.  It will be fluid for awhile.]
P -   Veronica Lech & Katy Hurley
C -   Ashley Fraser, Stephany Windland, Danielle Carpenter
1B - Katy Hurley, Michelle Offenberger, Stephany Windland, Veronica Lech,  Taylor Phillips, <>Sarah Tokodi, Danielle Carpenter, Kayla Perkinson, Victoria Roop, Teresa Tokodi
2B - Marley Petrella, Kendra Criss, Veronica Lech, Ashley Fraser, Katy Hurley, Taylor Phillips, Meagann Rafferty, Sarah Tokodi, Adriana Marshall, Kayla Perkinson, Victoria Roop, Kasandra Ruscitto, Teresa Tokodi
SS - Stephany Windland, Taylor Phillips, Danielle Carpenter, Veronica Lech, Kayla Perkinson, Sarah Tokodi
3B -  Kayla Perkinson, Katy Hurley, Stephany Windland, Ashley Fraser, Taylor Phillips, Kendra Criss, Kayla Perkinson, Sarah Tokodi, Victoria Roop
LF -  Michelle Offenberger, Taylor Phillips, Kayla Perkinson, Danielle Carpenter, Marley Petrella, Meagann Rafferty, Sarah Tokodi, Teresa Tokodi
CF - Danielle Carpenter, Taylor Phillips, Kayla Perkinson, Sarah Tokodi, Teresa Tokodi
RF -  Kendra Criss, Marley Petrella, Michelle Offenberger, Taylor Phillips, Mackenzie Bango, Meagann Rafferty, Adriana Marshall, Kayla Perkinson, Victoria Roop, Kasandra Ruscitto, Teresa Tokodi

Wild Cards - With two highly-successful basketball teams, our season rarely begins when it should.  While support of those teams is part of our school culture, it wreaks havoc with sorting out our roster.  Chances are that our lineup will not fully settle in until the middle of April. 

ROSTER
Seniors

   Kendra Criss, 2B/OF ~  Has not yet showed a lot at the plate, but has had good experience in the field, and should be more confident this year.  Is an excellent "attitude person", and a joy to be around.   Did absolutely everything she could to make our team better last season, even when there was no glory in it.  If she does not start, she'll likely be our bench captain, an important team role.
    Stephany Windland, 1B/SS/3B/C ~ May not be able to play her best position (1B) due to our other needs and her other desires, but is a solid and steady presence on the field, and a player who can literally be put at any position.  She had a very rough season at the plate last year, and is determined to be more productive this time around.  She has considerable power, and has learned to keep her emotions at the plate under control.  She did a good job at SS & 1B last year, and will help keep our infield stable.  We are expecting a big Senior year from her.
    Danielle Carpenter, OF/C ~ Had an outstanding year in Centerfield last year, as well as hitting her stride at the plate.  She has good instincts, gets a good jump on the ball, covers a lot of ground, and has a strong arm, which helped her make the LKC First Team.  Dani was our highest average hitter last year, and is likely to continue to grow in confidence and skill.  Her .444 average might get even better this year, and she has some power and baserunning savvy (11 SBs).
    Mackenzie Bango, OF ~ Willingly did everything she was asked last year, and got some game experience.  Is most valuable for her contributions to our team as a family.

Juniors
    Veronica Lech, P/IF ~ One of the key contributors on this squad.  She added 70 points to her Freshman batting average last year.  She fields well, and has the potential to hit even better than her .240 average last year shows.  Her OBP (.446) shows her knowledge of the strike zone (15 BBs) and her hustle.  She also has excellent speed (11 SBs), runs the bases intelligently and aggessively, and is likely to bat leadoff.  As a Pitcher, she finished very strong, gaining a 4-7 record with a 4.16 ERA, and winning two games in the Sectional tournament.
     Ashley Fraser, C ~ Yet another key to our success this year.  A very talented young lady who can play many positions, but our best option at Catcher.  Has excellent glove skills, a strong arm, and a solid bat.  She was second on the team in Steals last year (12), had a very good second-year average (.356, improving her Freshman stat by 100 points), and an excellent OBP (.491). 
    Michelle Offenberger, 1B/OF ~ A newcomer to our program last year, she gave us solid play at 1B and was an excellent Right fielder at the end of our season.  She has good speed in the field and at bat, and a good eye for the ball.  We hope she will hit confidently and advance to the next level in our lineup.
    Sarah Tokodi, IF/OF ~ Sarah is giving softball a try for the first time since her youth league days.  She is a natural (and excellent) athlete, who learns quickly, and could provide us with some help in several ways.  Her fielding skills are excellent for someone who hasn't played in such a long time, and I'm sure that her other skills will sharpen with practice, now that basketball is over.

Sophomores
      Katy Hurley, 3B/P ~ Swings a mean bat, and is very well-liked by all teammates.  Katy batted only .210 last year, but showed flashes of power, hit the ball hard regularly, and stands to do much better this season.  She gave us steady play at 3B last year, and learned the fundamentals of Pitching,  She'll be our #2 Pitcher this year, having gained some good experience in JV games last Spring.
    Marley Petrella, 2B/OF ~ Has good instincts in the field and good ability to go get the ball.  An excellent baserunner, she showed good ability to get on base last year, walking 10 times and stealing 8 bases.  Showed flashes of power at bat, had a .476 average in JV games, and demonstrated ability in the field.
    Meagan Rafferty, 2B/OF ~ Another great attitude emanates from this lively young lady, who loves the game and being part of this team.  Has good fielding ability and showed some power last year at the plate.
    Taylor Phillips, IF/OF ~ After serving two years as bat-girl (and eating us out of house & home) she took last year off to concentrate on basketball.  She returns this season with a good chance to earn a starting position, if she can return to the form she was displaying in the past.  Has excellent infield range and good hands, and can catch almost anything in the air.  She's aggressive at the plate, and has strong wrists.  Something of an X factor in our equation this year.
    Adriana Marshall, IF/OF ~ New to PC this year, she brings a pleasant sense of humor and good attitude to her work.  She has not played in several years, but is attentive and gives a good effort.

<>Freshmen
    Kayla Perkinson, IF/OF ~ A multitalented softball player, Kayla has several years of summer league to draw on and seems to have spent them well.  She has good fielding fundamentals and good form at the plate.  Has an excellent chance to earn a starting role for Varsity, and will be very important to the success of the JV team.
    Victoria Roop, IF/OF ~ Vic is an excellent all-around athlete, having played an important role on our Varsity Soccer team last fall.  Has good range and technique as a fielder, and seems able to learn the necessities of hitting well.
    Kasandra Ruscitto, IF/OF ~ Marvelous attitude and good experience makes her an excellent addition to our team.  She shows good fundamentals in all areas, and is likely to contribute much to our team experience this year.
    Teresa Tokodi, IF/OF ~ Another pleasant surprise to add to our family comes as Teresa also returns to softball for the first time since youth league.  She seems pretty versatile so far, and has good athletic skills, so she is likley to improve steadily throughout the season.

Batgirls
    Joni Casto and Emma Romanowski are 7th Graders who intend to play for us as soon as they are eligible, and are already showing excellent ability.  In fact, we'll pit our bat girls against anyone's for talent, ability, and skill.

OUTLOOK
    Losing three .300 hitters is never a good thing, but this group might be able to offset that loss if our Pitching improves sufficiently.  More difficult to replace will be the defense in which we take considerable pride. 
    Our best lineup at the end of last season had Seniors at Short, Second, and Left, which are all important spots.  As usual in a small school, we have to play roulette with our resources, so when one person moves, several others might also.  If we can solidify our defense early, then it should improve throughout the season.  Right now, this looks to be our simplest problem.
    The hitting problem seems to be the most complex.  Danielle's .444 average led the team last year, and Ashley followed up with a .356 average.  After that, Veronica is next with a .240, and then Katy's .210.  It might be unrealistic to expect the top two to do much better than they did, but the rest of our hitters must elevate their stats.  Stephany is very likely to do that, because she seems determined to improve on problems that held her back last year.  If a couple of our "secret weapons" turn out good years at the plate, we should be pretty well off.
    As always, Pitching is the key to success in high school softball, and this year is no exception.  Veronica has another year under her belt, is more determined and mature this season, and has been working hard to set a good example for the other girls.  She improved steadily throughout the season last year, and was pitching her best down the stretch, so we'd like to build on that.  Katy improved greatly last season, and has attended some camps, so we look forward to adding to her skills as well.  We'll still be looking for other arms to try out in hopes of improving our versatility.
    Teamwork should again be a strength, as all these girls have a good attitude about themselves and the team.  It is a fun group, and I enjoy working with them every day.  We're all starting to get a little "cabin fever", and wish we had more time to incorporate the basketball girls into the lineup, but we'll do the best we can until we find a lineup we can succeed with.  Until then, it's learning and improvement all season long.

Ap¹‘