By Chris Parker
Verona softball will look for new players to step up after graduating two first-team all-conference selections in Pagie Baur and Grace Neilson from last season’s six-win team.
“We lost two great leaders from last year so I am looking forward to a couple of young players stepping up to become leaders for our team,” Verona head coach Kim Nettles said. “America Castillo (sophomore catcher/shortstop) and Meghan Long (sophomore pitcher) (will be leaders). I believe that senior infielder Yoselin Martinez will also be a great leader this year.”
Long has worked to improve as a pitcher in the off-season.
“She (Long) is a young pitcher but has been working hard in the offseason to better her game,” Nettles said. “I’m excited to see what she can accomplish.”
The infield lineup will be a work-in-progress early on.
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“Because of losing some key players from last year, we will be pulling players from the infield to fill pitching and catching spots so many spots in the infield will be opened up to new players this season. We will be moving girls around and finding the best fit for the team,” Nettles said.
Senior Anna Long and junior Aubrey Hillhouse return to the outfield.
“Knowing that this is such a young team, I feel that we will have the opportunity to try girls in different positions and really work on defining how we play these positions. This will be a strength for us and help us for the next few years,” Nettles said. “This young team will definitely need to come together as a team and learn to adapt. Many girls will be asked to play in different positions and learn to think about the game from these different positions.”
Verona opens the season with its home tournament on Saturday, Mar. 19.
“My expectations for this season are simple: Love the game and get better each play,” Nettles said.
