Page 12 - RVO Diamond Roundup March 2017

12VV
SUNDAY, MARCH 19, 2017 | RIVER VALLEY & OZARK EDITION OF THE ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE BASEBALL & SOFTBALL REVIEW
CONWAY ST. JOSEPH LADY BULLDOGS
Coach: Lady Bulldogs have talent, lack depth
BY DONNA LAMPKIN STEPHENS
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Conway St. Joseph finished 5-12 last season, but if numbers hold up, coach Debra Wilhite is optimistic that the Lady Bulldogs will be improved
in 2017.
“I expect to be much better than we were
last year,” Wilhite said. “We have a good bunch of ball-savvy players with some experience. They seem excited to get started and get this show on the road.”
The Lady Bulldogs return seven starters: senior catcher Erin Sterka, junior infielder Lauren Holbrook, junior catcher/outfielder Chloe Kordsmeier, sophomore infielder Bailey Atkinson, sophomore pitcher/outfielder Hope Hargrove, sophomore infielder/outfielder Aaryanna Janowiecki and sophomore infielder/ outfielder Drew Lewis.
Sterka won the Bulldog MVP award last year. Wilhite said she could play collegiately next year.
“Erin is such a complete player, plus she has such a desire to play the game,” the coach said. “She would fit in well in anyone’s program.”
As a junior, Sterka led the Lady Bulldogs in batting average (.500); slugging percentage (.800); on-base percentage (.615); triples (four) and RBIs (15) and was second in runs scored with 20.
Holbrook won the Bulldog Team-Builder award. Atkinson won the Bulldog Super- Slugger Award.
The rest of the 2017 roster includes fresh- man infielder/outfielder Lauren Berger, freshman infielder Emily Briggler, freshman
Conference: 2A-4 East
Coach: Debra Wilhite
Assistant coaches: Lum Wilhite and
Bridget Davanzo
2016 record: 5-12
Mascot: Lady Bulldogs
Returning starters: Erin Sterka,
Lauren Holbrook, Chloe Kordsmeier, Bailey Atkinson, Hope Hargrove, Aaryanna Janowiecki and Drew Lewis
infielder/outfielder Abby Flake, freshman pitcher/outfielder Grace Keathley and fresh- man outfielder Emily Sanders.
“Depth is going to be a problem,” Wilhite said a few days before the season opener. “We started with 18, and now we’re down to 11. We had two seniors, but one decided she didn’t want to play and wanted to be a manager. So [Sterka] is my go-to gal.
“This year I’ve got some talent. It’s a good thing to try to decide who you’re going to put where. I’ve not been in this position in quite a few years.”
Wilhite said her roster includes “some great players with good basic skills.”
“We should be fair on both offense and de- fense,” she said.
Besides a lack of depth, the Lady Bulldogs must adjust to new combinations and personnel. “Naturally, when you put different players together and they are not used to playing with each other, it takes a while to acclimate,” Wil- hite said. “We will need to work on our situ- ation work in-depth to get better as the year
goes on.”
COURTESY OF RAY NIELSEN/CONWAY ST. JOSEPH SCHOOLS
Conway St. Joseph senior catcher Erin Sterka throws the ball back to her pitcher.
Wilhite served as Lady Bulldog coach for 16 years, then took a four-year break before returning. This is her third season back.
“Of course, everyone is striving to improve each year,” she said. “This year we have a great ninth-grade class to blend in with last year’s upperclassmen. Last year several players were asked to do things for the team’s benefit. Some of them were not accustomed to that.
“We were short in numbers but had a big heart.”
The Lady Bulldogs will compete this spring in the 2A-4 East Conference, which also
CONWAY ST. JOSEPH SOFTBALL
MARCH 28 .... FAULKNER COUNTY HOMESCHOOL MARCH 30 ............. SOUTH SIDE BEE BRANCH APRIL 3 ......................................@QUITMAN* APRIL 6 ..................................WONDERVIEW* APRIL 7 ..................................... @PANGBURN APRIL 8 ....... @HEBER SPRINGS TOURNAMENT APRIL 10 ............................... @GUY-PERKINS APRIL 11 .......................................BIGELOW* APRIL 17 ............................... @NEMO VISTA* APRIL 18 ............... WHITE COUNTY CENTRAL*
*DENOTES CONFERENCE GAMES
includes Bigelow, Conway Christian, England, Hector, Jacksonville Lighthouse, Pangburn, Quitman and White County Central.
Hector finished Class 2A state runner-up last year. Pangburn reached the quarterfinals. During the regular season, St. Joe will
compete in combined classification 1A/2A District 7 with Bigelow, Conway Christian, Guy- Perkins, Mount Vernon-Enola, Nemo Vista, Quitman, Sacred Heart, South Side Bee Branch and Wonderview.
Nemo Vista won the Class 1A state title last year. South Side Bee Branch, Wonderview and Sacred Heart were Class 1A State Tournament teams.
So the Lady Bulldogs’ schedule is a tough one, but they are embracing the challenge.
“We as coaches are very excited about the sea- son this year, and I can honestly say, so are the girls,” Wilhite said. “We are here to learn a few things about softball, maybe even a few things about life, and have a lot of fun doing it.”
CONWAY ST. JOSEPH BULLDOGS
ST. JOSEPH BASEBALL continued from 10VV The Bulldogs have some big holes to fill.
The roster includes four seniors, one junior, three sophomores and seven freshmen.
“Every game should be entertaining,” Davis said.
Last year, the Bulldogs finished third in their conference but didn’t qualify for the Class 2A State Tournament after a first-round loss to Hackett, 7-5, in the Class 2A West Regional.
This year, they will compete against Bigelow, Conway Christian, England, Hector, Pangburn, Quitman and White County Central in the
2A-4 East Conference. Hector, Conway Chris- tian and Pangburn reached the state tourna- ment last year.
During the regular season, St. Joe will com- pete in combined classification 1A/2A Dis- trict 7 with Bigelow, Conway Christian, Guy- Perkins, Mount Vernon-Enola, Nemo Vista, Quitman, Sacred Heart, South Side Bee Branch and Wonderview.
Nemo Vista and South Side Bee Branch reached the quarterfinals of the Class 1A State Tournament; Sacred Heart exited in the opening round.
“Our combined conference is going to be pretty good,” Davis said. “Nemo Vista and Sacred Heart are good programs. Some of these schools, like Mount Vernon-Enola and Guy and Wonderview, we haven’t played in baseball in close to 10 years. Some of those used to be big rivals for us.”
He said the Bulldogs are scheduled to see England in a tournament at Bauxite.
“It’s kind of difficult trying to play all the peoplewecouldseeinourdistricttournament,” Davis said.
At St. Joseph, baseball has to share play- ers with basketball, and Davis didn’t get his squad together until late February.
But after the disappointment of last sea- son, the Bulldogs were ready to get started.
Davis said his overall expectation in 2017 was for his team to win more games than it loses.
“It’s pretty simple,” Davis said. “If I can find a shortstop, catcher, second baseman and third baseman, we will have a chance to be pretty good. Besides those few ‘minor’ spots, we are pretty solid.”