By Chris Parker

Fall 2019 Preview: Willard Softball

By Chris Parker

Willard softball entered a rebuilding phase after the 2016 season with the graduation of several stars. The Lady Tigers took a step back from 19 wins in 2016 to nine wins in 2017 before improving to 12-15 last season.

“After our 2016 seniors graduated, we knew we were going to go through a bit of a rebuilding phase. The first year was going to be the toughest because you typically cannot replace the kind of talent those seniors, including Bridget Rippe, brought to the table. The physical capabilities as well as the leadership qualities were difficult to replace. However, we spent 2017 developing and teaching the younger players and, hopefully, preparing them for the upcoming years and the battles they would face. It has not been easy, but they have accepted the challenge and done a really nice job of showing up every day to get better and to be better. Our goal a couple of years ago was to improve every year. So far, we’ve done that and our goal for this year has not changed. We lost some great seniors last year in Savannah Yeargan and Cheyenne Terry, and it will take us a little bit to find a new identity without them, but our younger players have really stepped up to the challenge this summer and our more experienced pla
yers are coming into their own. Hopefully, this season we will be able to climb back above the .500 mark and surprise a couple of people,” Willard head coach AshLeigh Williams said.

Softball teams go as their pitching goes, and this year Willard will lean on sophomore Sydni Fletcher as the primary pitcher. Fletcher threw 62 innings with 34 strikeouts and a 2.94 ERA last season.

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“She threw some for us last year but will take over the majority of the load this season. Sydni has worked hard over the years to improve her command and mix in off speed pitches. She is also one of the smartest players I’ve ever coached. She understands at this level, you can just throw the ball by everyone. You have to be smarter than the hitters and learn how to make them get themselves out,” Williams said.

Junior Keeley Aaron and freshman Abby McMillin will be Willard’s other two pitchers on staff.

Mainstays Sara Morris (second baseman/shortstop) and Baylee Gastineau (third baseman/catcher) return for their senior seasons. Morris will be a three-year starter. She hit .235 with 16 runs scored last year. Gastineau drove in 10 runs with a .278 batting average.

Sophomore Ryley Ritchey will serve as the primary catcher. She was a strong hitter last year with a .359 batting average and 22 runs batted in.

The outfield will be entirely new this year after the graduation of last year’s starting left and centerfielder and the relocation of last year’s right fielder to the infield. Senior Maliyah Wells will be the anchor in the outfield with the most experience will different players will mix into the other outfield spots.

Several players have had strong off-seasons for Willard.

“Seniors Sara Morris and Maliyah Wells have been great leaders for this team. They will really look to those two this year, especially when during times we struggle,” Williams said. “Lindsay Perkins (sophomore), Keeley Aaron, and Kailie Crews (junior) had a good summer. All three surprised me in different ways and I’m excited to see them develop more this fall. Crews was my best overall hitter this summer and with her speed, she was able to impact the game in a lot of different ways, especially if she got on base.”

Willard will look to improve consistency and mental toughness in order to have success this year.

“I’m not sure we have one area that I can say we consistently excel in. We’ve worked over the summer to try to be more consistent in specific areas, but I guess we’ll see if we were able to accomplish that once the fall rolls around,” Williams said. “I think (we need to improve) the mental aspect of the game. We struggle with confidence and competitiveness. They have the physical abilities to be successful, but a lot of these girls don’t know what success looks like on the softball field because of the last couple of years. Getting them to believe they can win and act like winners will be our biggest hurdles.”

Willard will travel to Monett on Aug. 23 for a jamboree with the host Lady Cubs and Webb City. The Lady Tigers open the season on Sept. 3 at Lebanon.