Potlatch's softball team looking to repeat

Mar. 15—Another spring has arrived and with it, the return of high school softball to the area.

Going into this season, some teams are looking to reaffirm their status at the top of their respective leagues, while some are looking to get back to the state tournament and earn a state championship that remains ever-so-evasive.

Here are some of the top teams and stories to watch going into this season:

How far can Potlatch go?

Potlatch captured the ever-elusive Class 1A state championship after getting third place in 2021 and after the pandemic nixed the 2020 state tournament. The Loggers dominated the Whitepine League in the process, going a perfect 13-0 in the league and 19-2 overall.

Potlatch returns most of its title team, with Emma Chambers and Rebecca Butterfield the only two who graduated.

"It's good," Loggers coach Dean Butterfield said. "The girls, they're good players. If they come back and play as a team, it works great. They can be as good as they want to be."

It'll be a bit of an "easier" time this year in the Whitepine League, as Troy and Prairie will not field teams because of lack of numbers.

Still, Butterfield thinks the league is as tough as ever.

"It's a good league, a very good league," Butterfield said. "Hopefully we can get extra games, but still, the teams that are left (in the Whitepine League), they're good. The girls have been pretty fortunate. The seniors we lost are good, but we've been undefeated in league for the past three years."

If there's one obstacle in the way, as with all teams, it's the weather. Several games already have been postponed, and many teams have been forced to practice inside school gymnasiums.

The surface of a gymnasium makes it harder to work on defensive drills and fielding, but it still hasn't stopped the Loggers from trying.

"I think we'll be a lot stronger in our hitting since that's the only thing we can do right now," Potlatch senior Tayva McKinney said. "Obviously, it'll be different (against) a live pitcher. But fundamentally, I think we'll be pretty solid. We've been working on a lot of fielding in here, doing ground balls and everything, so, our fielding should be pretty strong too."

The Loggers hope to remain at the top of the Whitepine League over teams like Clearwater Valley and Kendrick — both of whom finished with eight or more wins in the conference.

Can Colfax finally reach the mountain top?

Colfax finished 2022 a dominant 18-1 in the Class 2B Bi-County league and 24-4 overall. The Bulldogs entered the state tournament as the fifth seed and cruised through their first two state tournament games, scoring combined 28 runs against Lake Roosevelt and Goldendale.

Colfax fell to top-seeded Adna in a semifinal-round game, allowing the most runs it had all season while also scoring the least amount in an 11-1 loss.

The Bulldogs eventually finished fourth after wins against Toledo but falling 13-8 to Forks in the third-place game.

Despite the disappointing end to last season, Colfax returns 11 varsity letterwinners to the team, giving them experience and the arms to replace the graduated players in the pitching rotation.

The hope is with that experience comes a state title this year.

Bengals hope to make it to the dance

Lewiston has went 40-15 the past two seasons, but come up just short each time of making the state tournament.

The Bengals, who went 19-8 a year ago, allowed a seventh-inning run thanks to an error and dropped a heartbreaking 2-1 decision to Boise Timberline in a state play-in game.

Six seniors graduated but the Bengals return nine varsity letterwinners, eight of them seniors, and are primed to make this the year.

First-year coach Jesse Roehl replaces Kristin Delp and should benefit from the experience returning. Pitching and defense will be critical, something that has become a hallmark of Lewiston softball the past few seasons.

The key for the Bengals will be how often they can put all three phases of the game all together. If they can, a trip to the state tournament could become a reality.

Kowatsch can be reached at 208-848-2277, tkowatsch@lmtribune.com or on Twitter @Teren_Kowatsch.