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Pitching tandem leads West Springfield
All it takes to turn a mediocre softball team into a great one is a decent pitcher.You just need one flame-throwing, or one corner-painting, hurler to toe the rubber.
West Springfield has two such players.
Seniors Jess Thomas and Kat Rogers rotate in and out at the position known as "1" in a scorebook, and both are quite effective.
"Jess mixes up her pitches and the type of pitches, and Kat's got a little bit more speed on it," Spartans coach Margaret Gibson said. "They're getting more confident. They're really not true pitchers, and that's unusual. But Jess can play anywhere, Kat can play anywhere."
If they really are not "true pitchers," it would be difficult to prove that statement. Thomas, who did most of the pitching in 2006, has a 20-9 career record with a 2.32 ERA and 183 strikeouts. Rogers pitched the bulk of last season and sports a 2.45 career ERA in 16 games.
At the plate, the duo continues to impress. Last season, Thomas drove in 30 runs and hit a team-high .506. Rogers hit .435 and slugged .739.
Gibson spoke very highly of Thomas, who will play for Emory University in Atlanta next year.
"As I said to my players, I'd clone Jess Thomas," said a smiling Gibson after the team dispatched Westfield, 11-4, Monday afternoon. "The reason she's awesome is because she's so well balanced. She loves softball, but she's very humble. The way she approaches the game is very smart. I never have to worry about her not being mentally ready to play. She leads by action, not an arrogance.
"She's just what the Spartans program is all about as far as developing character in our players."
Gibson's daughter, Margaret, will play shortstop this season and hit in the No. 1 spot in the lineup. But the junior will also see some time on the mound as the coaching staff prepares for life without Thomas and Rogers. Junior Alex Abrahamson hits second and plays right field, while Thomas and Rogers fill the meaty part of the order. Meredith May, a senior third baseman who hit .316 last season, hits fifth.
"We have a good core and we should do well, we should play good Spartan ball with the tradition of winning here," coach Gibson said. "We've been in the [Patriot] District championship ... in 2002, 2003, 2006 and 2007. We've won three out of those four. Our goal is to get back [to the district title game] and take it back from [last year's winner] South County."
South County, who was upset by Herndon in the first round of the Northern Region tournament last year, finished the campaign with a 20-4 mark. Coach Al Thompson said his team returns the reigning Patriot District Pitchers of the Year, Paulina Gregorowicz and Chelsey Dunham.
In 80.1 innings pitched during the 2007 campaign, Gregorowicz went 11-2 with one save and an ERA of 0.70. Dunham pitched 78 innings, displaced 47 hits and finished the year with a 0.72 ERA. Gregorowicz is a senior, but Dunham's sophomore status guarantees the Stallions a few more seasons of near-perfection in the pitching department.
Hayfield will pose another threat in the Patriot District this season. With a killer middle infield comprising freshmen twins Samantha (shortstop) and Megan (second base) Perry-Shifflett, the Hawks are primed for a successful season and run at the district title. The Perry-Shiffletts will also do some major damage with their bats, according to coach Ron Giovannucci.
"I am counting on the twins for the long balls," said the coach. "They play a lot of select travel ball, they go to a lot of camps and they're really serious about the game. They're always working on their skills, which makes them head and shoulders above everybody else. They've got good attitudes and they're very dedicated to the game."
Handling Hayfield's pitching duties is junior Jennifer Windau, who went 11-11 with a 2.30 ERA in 2007.
"I can't say enough about her," said Giovannucci of his hurler. "Her ball placement is so good, and then she's got such an array of pitches."
Elsewhere in the area, Robinson is a threat in the Concorde District. The Rams lost top players Dorian Shaw (Michigan) and Taylor Cunningham (Radford) to graduation, but return senior pitcher Erin Henning, sophomore Marcy Bowdren and junior Christine Cunningham.
"Everybody is wondering what it's like after Dorian and Taylor," Robinson coach Barry Gorodnick said. "I still think we're gonna be OK. Are we gonna miss those bats? Oh, for sure. I still think our defense is gonna be our strongest point, even though we've got some good hitters. Having Erin back I think is gonna make us very competitive as well.
"We're good gap hitters, we hit the ball hard, we're gonna put the ball in play. If we cut down on our Charlie Brown mistakes, I think we should do fairly well."
Robinson won the region title last season and advanced to the state semifinals, but the Rams fell to a talented Hanover squad to end its postseason stretch.
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