Softball preview: Area teams bring experienced rosters, coaches into season

Apr. 1—The 2022 softball season saw two Crawford County programs notch historic milestones.

Saegertown was one win away from playing for a state championship, which was the program's first trip to the state semifinals. In Class 4A, Conneaut won its first playoff game in program history. Both teams return all-state players and seem ready to compete in the postseason.

The other four teams in the county — Cambridge Springs, Cochranton, Maplewood and Meadville — return head coaches and a key nucleus of players. Each team could be in contention for a region title.

Conneaut

With its 8-1 win against Hickory in the District 10 playoffs last season, the Conneaut softball program made history. It was the first postseason win for the Eagles.

Conneaut would go on to lose to eventual D-10 runner-up Franklin in the Class 4A semifinal round.

Conneaut will need to replace two all-region players due to graduation — Julianna Jacobs and Erika Shrock. Shrock was the team's No. 1 pitcher.

This year's team features seven seniors and will not be short of leadership.

"Leadership is key. These girls have been playing softball together for a long time. Leadership is never easy and with seven seniors, having a plan in place for what they want to do with the team is very important," Conneaut head coach Jason Onderko said. "They are working hard on that plan.

"We need to continue to grow as a team, take care of the ball and play for each other."

Leading the charge will be a pair of all-state selections in Brooke Wise and Linda Shepard. Wise led the team with a 0.522 batting average and had 35 hits. She is a Salem University commit.

Shepard, a Penn State New Kensington commit, belted 15 home runs and 38 RBIs. Both Shepard and Wise saw time in the circle last season and have pitched early this season.

Conneaut can also look to returning all-region players Kaley Cook, Taylor Schlosser and Ashlee Barabas.

The Eagles are in a very competitive Region 5 that includes Cathedral Prep, McDowell, General McLane, Warren, Meadville and Erie.

"This region is like a playoff game every day. It's a fun region to play in, you never know whose going to come out on top each game," Onderko said. "Each team is well coached, well respected by us and everyone is returning a lot of starters."

Despite the level of competition in the region and in Class 4A, the team's goals are to win a region and district title.

"A region title and D-10 are always on the list of Goals," Onderko said. "These girls are hungry and have unfinished business to take care of."

Saegertown

The Saegertown Panthers had a remarkable 2022 season. The Panthers won the Class 1A District 10 championship with a 12-8 win against Cochranton.

The Panthers followed with two wins in the state playoffs. Saegertown's season ended in the state semifinal round to state runner-up DuBois Central Catholic.

This year, Saegertown will deal with the loss of seniors Abigail Kirdahy, Brittany Houck and Katherine Diesing. In addition to losing three starters, the Panthers are also in Class 2A this season.

"We're definitely going to miss our seniors from last year as they played some pretty integral positions with confidence and consistency, however, we have girls who are working hard to step up and take advantage of these opportunities," Saegertown head coach Jenn Bowes said. "We're pretty eager to have the core of our team returning. Their experience with playing in high-level and high-pressure games is going to be invaluable as we move up a class and play some bigger schools."

Saegertown remains in a region heavy with Class 1A schools. In the district playoffs, the Panthers will have to contend with perennial power Union City as well as defending district champion Reynolds and runner-up Seneca.

"Our expectation is to prepare effectively for each game and peak at the right time to get back into a District 10 final."

Saegertown returns junior all-state pitcher Mikaila Obenrader. Obenrader, also a first-team all-region selection, hurled 241 strikeouts last season and had a 1.18 ERA. Also returning is first-team all-region selection Rhiannon Paris, second-team all-region selections Hailee Gregor and Alyssa Arblaster and Allegheny College commi Kylie Thompson.

"Our goals for this season are to start small, be good at the little things, develop confidence early and be versatile," Bowes said.

Meadville

The momentum is building for the Meadville Bulldogs softball program and third-year head coach Renee Ashton.

"I have learned that this group of girls does not quit and is determined to do their best," Ashton said. "They want to see each other succeed in everything they do on the field. This team is well rounded and athletic."

The Bulldogs finished 7-12 last year and return nearly every player this season. Missing from last year's team is all-region selection Avery Phillips, who graduated.

The 2023 Bulldogs have three seniors — Aliviah Ashton, Lexie Carr and Katie Say — who Ashton expects to lean on as leaders.

Meadville also returns first-team all-region selection Rylee Kregel. As well as returning starters and sophomores Kendall Mealy, Teagan Reichel and Elliot Schleicher. Freshmen Addyson Kregel and Lila Kightlinger will also see time in the lineup.

"We are feeling confident in our batting lineup from top to bottom. We have more than nine that can get the job done," Ashton said. "Our region is tough with talented pitchers, so our main focus has been hitting."

Meadville is in Region 5 with Conneaut, Cathedral Prep, McDowell, General McLane, Warren and Erie.

"We are excited to see how this season unfolds. Our goal is always a region and district title," Ashton said. "With the talent in this region/district, you have to bring your best game every game. I know we have the talent so we are going to continue to work hard and see how far we can go this year."

Maplewood

Third-year head coach Brad Crawford has guided his Maplewood Tigers to an improved record year after year.

Last season, the Tigers were the No. 7 seed in the Class 2A playoffs and were eliminated in the quarterfinals by eventual champion Reynolds.

The goal this year, is to be a competitor.

"What's next for this group is to be a top competitor in this region," Crawford said. "My expectation this year is for this group to be solid all-around.

"To compete for the region title these players need to be hungry on both defense and offense and keep the errors to a minimum. We need to have more energy and drive than the team on the other side of the field. Be the bigger competitor."

Gone from last year's team is all-region selection Izzy Eimer. Leading the team this season is senior centerfielder McKenna Crawford. Crawford and Jocelyn Lane were both second-team all-region selections.

Sophomore Rhinn Post will be the team's No. 1 pitcher. Crawford will also look to Sheila Despenes, Maddy Banik, Sophia Niedbala and Madison Eimer to play big roles for the Tigers.

Crawford also welcomes a "solid freshmen group" consisting of Lexus Whitman, Bree Neely, Mylee Crawford, Brianna Kope and Sam Stanford. Other players to keep an eye on are Izzy Somerville, Jillian Shoemaker and Reese Klopick.

Maplewood will join Saegertown as the only Class 2A teams in Region 2. Also in the region are Cambridge Springs, Cochranton, Eisenhower, Rocky Grove, Youngsville and Iroquois.

Cambridge Springs

The Cambridge Springs Blue Devils finished last season 8-9 and endured a lot of injuries throughout the last several weeks of the year.

Despite being shorthanded, the Devils battled District 1A champion Saegertown to a 2-0 loss in the district semifinals. Gone from that team are all-region players Aly Acosta-Reyes, Taylor Smith and Makenzie Lewis.

Cambridge Springs returns four all-region selections from a year ago. That includes pitcher Hailee Rodgers. The senior will be in her third season as the ace for the Blue Devils.

Head coach Angela Mumford is excited to bring on a freshman pitcher in Kayla Crawford who will help keep Rodgers' arm healthy deep into the season.

"For the first time ever I've got options on the mound. This year we are not going to rely on one arm," Mumford said. "At the end of last season we had some pretty significant injuries. We are doing our very best to be able to see the longevity of our pitchers.

"You're gonna see both of them. They'll both spend time out there. Hailee is our returning ace who has worked her butt off all these years, but last year we saw what happens when you just overthrow a poor kid."

Cambridge has seven seniors on the roster. The Blue Devils also feature a crop of talented underclassmen who will see significant time this season. Most notably Jaydan Simmons, Jayden Newell, both freshmen — as well as Payton Leandro and Triniti Caldwell, both sophomores.

The Blue Devils are in a competitive region with Saegertown, Cochranton, Maplewood and other high quality teams. The rigorous region schedule should help prepare them for the postseason

"I love how we can all challenge each other throughout the year," Mumford said. "It makes you have to bring it every single game. That benefits all of us.

Cochranton

The Cochranton Cardinals fell a few runs short of a district title last season, but the Cards return a lot of talent and will be in the mix again.

The Cards lost to Saegertown 12-8 in the Class 1A district championship game. Gone from that team is a talented senior class that included four first-team all-region players in Chloa Lippert, Carly Richter, Jaylin McGill and Kaylin Rose.

The goal this season for the Cardinals and head coach Mark McGuire is to get back to the district title game.

"That's always the goal," McGuire said. "We feel like we left a little on the table that day."

Returning is first-team all-region selection Brooklyn Needler and second-team all-region pitcher Taytum Jackson. Jackson is currently injured and the Cardinals will turn to a committee of pitchers until their ace returns to the lineup.

"It will probably be a group effort. Brooklyn Needler and Katie Ewing will be one and two," McGuire said. "Dani Hoffman will see some time on the mound and we have a few freshmen who can throw too."

McGuire will lean on his experienced seniors — Chelsey Freyermuth, Ewing and Jackson. Several seniors that haven't seen much varsity time and will this season are Lili Douglas, Zoe Hansen and Keirstyn Miller.

"We have a few other seniors that haven't had a lot of playing time, but they've put their time in and they're ready to shine," McGuire said.

With Saegertown bumping up to Class 2A, the Cardinals could battle Cambridge Springs for a district title.

Alex Topor can be reached at (814) 724-6370 or by email at atopor@meadvilletribune.com.