Record last season: 14-4 (lost in second playoff round)
Head Coach: Dennis Claire
WLC was on the brink of their annual trip to Plymouth State last year, down to the final out, but Portsmouth Christian had other plans.
“All we had do was make the throw to first and we’d be in the Final Four again, but we didn’t make it,” said head coach Dennis Claire.
The Warriors will try to overcome the sting of PCA’s walk-off win by making their way back to the top of Division IV, but it won’t be easy.
Last year’s impact seniors, solid second baseman Lorrie Blais, speedy outfielder Chelsea Barnes and center field patroller Jenna Bragdon, are gone, leaving three huge holes to fill in the field.
“The outfield is where we’ll need to do some work,” Claire said.
Senior Kassie Cavarretta is the only returning outfielder. She’ll hold down a corner spot, as will Julie Joyal, and the two will flank 7th-grader Sam Yurcak, who’ll jump into center.
The infielders have a bit more experience under their belts. Tesa Simpson is back at short, where she’s been stationed for years. Zandra Morris will hold down first, and Abby LeBlanc, a freshman, is at second. (Dating himself a little, Claire admitted that LeBlanc’s mother Sherry actually played for him on his first championship softball team in 1992.)
The heart and soul of this Warrior team will be the battery. Ally Schwab is behind the plate for one last season, and the backstop is poised for another All-State performance.
Throwing to Schwab will be a combination of Lexi Balam, who’s been hurling for WLC since she was in 7th grade, and Sara Holka, the senior who’s been plagued by arm trouble but should be able to go. Whichever of those two isn’t pitching on a given day will man third base.
Sunapee is the big favorite to repeat as DIV champion, and WLC gets an early look at them, as they are scheduled to host the Lakers on Wednesday, field conditions permitting. Then they’ll host rival PCA, which lost a few key players from the juggernaut of the past two seasons but still packs a punch.
“We may start out slow, but I think we’ll get better,” Claire said. “We’ll just try to improve as we go along. That’s what we always do, keep getting better and peak at the end of the season.”
Last year’s record: 9-9 (lost in first playoff round)
Head coach: Dutch Stauffeneker (first year)
There will be a lot of attention on the Mascenic Vikings this season. With nearly everyone returning from last season and a few key pieces from Boynton’s championship team now at the high school, first-year coach Dutch Stauffeneker has what might be a loaded lineup. But Stauffeneker cautioned us to temper our expectations a little bit, so let’s not anoint them yet – not after only a few practices and scrimmages, anyway.
“We’ve looked okay at times and we’ve looked pretty bad at times,” Stauffeneker said. “But, we’ve got a high ceiling.”
Normally, a returning All-State senior catcher like Casey Wayrynen would be a lock behind the plate. But the Vikings actually have an embarassment of riches at the position, with freshman slugger Raven Comtois the seeming frontrunner for the starting job. Wayrynen will start the season at catcher, as Comtois has a thumb injury and will start off at first base. Once Comtois is healthy, Wayrynen will likely move to second base.
“She just wants to do whatever it takes to help the team win,” Stauffeneker said.
Sydney Letters will play second in the interim.
Fellow freshman Maddie LaBrie will bring her middle school pitching prowess to the Vikings this season, moving Sam Bilodeau to center field. Bilodeau will likely see some mound time as well, as will Autumn Firmin.
Jordyn Babin is locked into the shortstop position, and Melonie Ojala returns to third. Tory Keating will have a corner outfield position (“She’s got a strong arm and runs like a gazelle,” Stauffeneker said).
Meagan Brand should compete for playing time in the outfield as well.
If the Vikings can avoid the big inning – their bane, defensively, last year – they ought to find themselves hovering around the top third of Division III.
Last year’s record: 15-3 (lost in state semifinals)
Head coach: Tom Lambert
The Orioles narrowly missed a shot at the state finals last year after a heartbreaking loss to White Mountains. Though they have a couple big slots to fill this season due to college-caliber players who graduated, Conant has a couple freshmen who’ll compete right away and a slew of upperclassmen with plenty of skill and experience.
Stalwart catcher Devon Blood is back for her senior year; she’ll be supplemented by impressive freshman Madison Picard. Grace Chadbourne will slide over to first base and Maddy Springfield will take care of center.
Head coach Tom Lambert has a positional battle at shortstop playing out, as Sierra Landry, Brianna Dionne and Skyler Tenney are all capable, so it’s a matter of who can seize control. If Landry gets the job, Dionne will take third, and vice versa, and Tenney would slot back to the outfield, where she’d join Springfield and Sam Dubois.
Bethany Hector will likely move into the infield and take second base.
Filling the shoes of game-changer Ivy Chalke, last year’s star senior pitcher, will be freshman Brenna Welch. It’s tough to replace someone like that, but Welch appears to be up for the task.
“She’s got the mentality,” Lambert said. “It looks like she’s a little bulldog out there.”
Springfield will also take a few turns on the mound.
No matter how the season plays out, Lambert hopes his team can come together and play for each other.
“The hope is that they play well together, everybody contributes, everybody is committed to the team,” Lambert said. “Our hitting, 1-9, is probably better than last year. Our defense is just as good. We should be able be able to hit with anybody – our 1-9 hitters are as good as anyone in the state.”
Last year’s record: 4-11
Head coach: Deb Riley
The Cougars are coming off a disappointing season, but they should have the experience and maturity to right the ship this year. Four seniors and a handful of juniors are back, and a few talented underclassmen will add their skills to the pool.
“We do have some talent,” said head coach Deb Riley. “The key is going to be having that talent work together and developing a chemistry on the field.”
Senior Hunter Anderson is back on the mound; she threw a no-hitter last year and has only improved, now mixing in some movement pitches to her arsenal.
Senior Sasha Brock returns to center field, where she’ll be flanked by Taylor Guay in left and either Sammy Yeaw or Tierney Thompson, depending on who wins out.
Hannah Reinfrank will ply her trade at first base, where she’s much improved, Riley said.
Freshman Rachyl Parslow brings her grit to the hot corner.
“She has a pretty good amount of competitive spirit and experience,” Riley said.
The rest of the positions are yet to be decided. Sara Dauphinais will battle with Leah Stone for the shortstop spot and Hayley “Hi-C” Cheviot and Carly Storro are vying for second.
Catcher is also in a bit of a flux right now for the Cougars. Maryssa Williams and Reilly McCarty are both great options for the backstop position, but both are injured. Williams should be healthy sooner than McCarty, but a stopgap solution may be needed.
“Our goal is to be above .500,” Riley said. “My goal is to be a lot better than that, obviously.”
Riley said she was extremely excited that JV coach Amanda Hinton will return to the team this year.
“That’s pretty crucial for us,” Riley said. “I feel like she and I are co-head coaches together.”
Keep reading the Ledger-Transcript for all the action this upcoming season.