By Chris Parker

Fall 2019 Preview: Lebanon Softball

By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)

Lebanon softball had its share of ups and downs in 2018. The Lady Jackets finished the season with a 9-14 record, falling in the opening round of districts to Rolla.

Head coach Stanley Crum attributed some of the team’s struggles to defensive inconsistencies.

“We had a tough defensive season as a team where we committed over 100 errors during the campaign,” Crum said. “The defensive struggles cost us several games during the season where making routine plays would have resulted in wins.”

Shoring up defensive play will be a priority heading into the season; however, Lebanon must also find replacements for a quartet of graduated seniors, including starting pitcher Kaylee Keen (.407 BA, 2 HR, 112 K), Leslee Weddle, Emily Morque and Amanda Varble.

Keen and Weddle will continue their softball careers this fall at Missouri Valley College and East Central College, respectively.

While replacing a four-year mainstay in the circle is no easy task, Crum has high expectations for junior Nicole Truitt, an all-district and all-conference selection who led the team in hitting last season (.443 BA).

“Nicole will enter the season as our Ace in the circle, and her biggest strength is accuracy,” Crum said. “We expect big things from Nicole for the next two seasons.”

A trio of seniors should provide some much-needed leadership and experience, including Mackenzie Reeves (.415 BA), Alayna Starnes and Allison Welsh.

Sophomore Katie Schneider, another all-district and all-conference selection, rounds out the group of returnees.

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Lebanon’s roster will also benefit from an influx of talented newcomers this season, according to Crum.

Junior transfer Regan Hathaway will take over duties at second base, and a strong freshman class is set to move up and make an immediate impact within the varsity lineup.

“We have a tremendous freshman class coming in,” Crum said. “This group had a combined junior high record of 23-3 over the last two seasons and are a very, very talented group.”

Reagan McCowan, Taylor Rodden and Cailyn Willbanks are likely candidates for starting roles, while Mariana Becker, Gracie Waterman and Makayla Dawson all have varsity potential.

While the Lady Jackets will feature a multitude of options at nearly every position this season, Crum realizes success will be a work in progress.

“The biggest challenge we will have to overcome is the lack of varsity experience that we will put on the field,” Crum said. “Our youngsters will have to grow up quickly if we are going to have success. Once they get comfortable at the varsity level, this group has the potential to do some pretty great things.”

That potential starts in the circle with Truitt and Schneider.

“Nicole will enter as our ace,” Crum said. “She is not an overpowering pitcher but has a good change up and can hit her spots with pin-point control. Katie is cast from almost the same die as Nicole. She has a good change up and when her accuracy is on point, she is very effective.”

At the plate, the Lady Jackets will also look to shore up some inconsistencies in the bottom half of the order that plagued the team at times last season.

“Our lineup this season will boast a very balanced blend of speed and power,” Crum said. “There will be very few weak hitters in the lineup, and we will have six hitters that have the potential to steal bases for us.”

Crum also believes Lebanon’s biggest liability last season could turn out to be one of its biggest assets in 2019.

“Our biggest strength heading into this season is our defensive improvement, Crum said. “During our off-season workouts and practice games, we have played stellar defense. It is almost the polar opposite of the way we played last season.”

With so many positives in the offseason, it’s easy to see why expectations are running high at Lebanon. Entering his fourth year at the helm, Crum is eager to see his program continue to develop.

“This is the first group of seniors that have played all of their high school ball with me, so I am looking forward to seeing if the programs I established during my first season at Lebanon will begin to produce fruit,” Crum said. “There are almost always growing pains when a new coach takes over a program, but now it is time to see if we are heading in the right direction.”

Lebanon opens the season Aug. 30 at Stoutland.