Players to watch
1. Kayla Boseman, Ooltewah: The junior and Mississippi State commitment is equally important to the Lady Owls as a pitcher and a batter. Last season she had a 19-4 pitching record while batting .589 with 21 home runs and 89 RBIs.2. Cheyenne Lindsey, Baylor: The junior speedster who is committed to Florida helped Baylor win last year’s Division II-AA state championship, leading the team in batting average (.559), runs scored (65), stolen bases (34) and triples (9).3. Ashley Rogers, Meigs County: A junior committed to Tennessee, Rogers had a 28-3 pitching record with 409 strikeouts and batted .473 with 15 home runs while helping the 2016 Class A Lady Tigers win their first state softball championship.
Teams to watch
1. Ooltewah: Two Lady Owls graduated off last year’s team, which faltered in a Class AAA sectional and failed to reach the state tournament. But CBS MaxPreps has them rated No. 33 nationally in preseason.2. Meigs County: The Lady Tigers return the bulk of their Class A state-championship team, including their pitching ace. Additionally, they get back junior slugging first baseman Jade Meadows, who missed last year with an ACL tear.3. GPS: The Bruisers had no seniors last year and have none this year. But led by junior pitcher Hannah Kincer, can they upend Baylor? The Lady Raiders have won five of the last six DII-AA state titles. GPS was runner-up in four.
There must be something magical about a Soddy-Daisy softball uniform, regardless of who is wearing it. Or who is coaching the team.
“It’s nice,” Soddy-Daisy first-year head coach Travis Hale said. “I like the high expectations being here and the reputation Soddy-Daisy has.”
Hale’s first year in the program was last season – the last of four as head coach for Wes Skiles, who resigned to spend more time with family. Skiles’ teams won two District 5-AAA championships, and the 2014 team won the Region 3 title and finished third in the state tournament.
In the 14 seasons from 1999 through 2012, all under the guidance of Clifford Kirk (now the coach at Sale Creek), Soddy-Daisy played in 10 state finals and won seven. And the Lady Trojans’ swagger remains in spite of not having a team make an appearance in a final since that 2012 season, when the program won its eighth overall state championship.
“Expectations are definitely the same as they’ve always been,” Soddy-Daisy senior catcher and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga signee Cameren Swafford said. “There’s just different people coaching. How we work, how we practice and how we play is still there.”
Hale’s assistants are Drew Lyness, also the girls’ basketball coach, and Ricky Ritchie, a former Bledsoe County softball coach. His daughter, Lydia, is currently a senior at East Carolina and the anchor of the Pirates’ pitching staff.
Lady Trojans senior right-hander Shonna Penney, who has signed with Lee University, said Coach Ritchie already has helped her a lot with the mental side of pitching.
“He’s really helped me out a lot with just the basics, like working the batter, location and speed,” Penney said. “It’s been refreshing. It’s been a whole new way of practicing for pitchers. It’s going to help us a lot when we face the tough teams. We’re not just going to be throwing.”
Penney will share time this season in the pitching circle with classmate Breanna Britton and sophomore Stephanie Blevins. Britton, who also plays outfield, has signed with West Virginia State.
Hale inherits a veteran team with six seniors. Outfielder Hailey Woodcock has signed with Lincoln University and third baseman Aminah Wood is committed to play at Tennessee Tech. Ashley Suttles is the other senior.
“I think all the seniors have taken a leadership role,” Penney said. “It’s just been kind of natural to all of us, because we all want to do so good.”
Swafford said she not only wants to set an example on the field but away from it, too. She recalled her freshman season and how it was looking up to that senior class.
“How the seniors were that year is exactly how I want to be,” Swafford said.
Some juniors will play prominent roles this season as well. Alexis Trimiar, who led off for the Lady Trojans last season but also led them in home runs, returns at shortstop.
“Last year we had her lead off because we didn’t have a true leadoff batter,” Hale said. “It worked out this year that we’ve moved her to the cleanup spot. She’s a great hitter. She’s got a good eye for the ball. Wherever you need her, she’s going to produce for you.”
Britton is expected to get the first shot at the No. 1 spot in the order.
“Really they just need to keep adjusting to the new system we’re putting in place,” Hale said. “We’re starting to see it come together. As the season goes on, I think we’ll improve on it more and more.”
Other juniors earning starting roles are first baseman Courtney Daughtrey, second baseman Haley Harvey and outfielder Peri Prestwood.
Soddy-Daisy opens its season Tuesday when it hosts Rhea County at 5 p.m. Its first of 12 district games is March 28 when McMinn County visits.
Ooltewah won the district and region titles last year and returns most of that team.
“This group is one to look out for,” Swafford said of the 2017 Lady Trojans. “People should not underestimate us by any means.”
Contact Kelley Smiddie at ksmiddie@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6653. Follow him on Twitter @KelleySmiddie.