Coaches, players frustrated by late start on diamonds.

Spending much of their spring break inside the gym
practicing fielding and throwing are (from left) Anne
Kuznicki, Kayla Kermode, Allisson Korson and Emily
Schaub. The Eagles open the season at Frankfort
on April 11.

With spring weather still just a pleasant thought, the Glen Lake, St. Mary, Leland and Suttons Bay softball teams have been turning their attention to indoor practices as they get ready for another season.

The teams are anxious to hit the ball diamonds, and make a run for conference championships.

The Lakers were the only county school softball team to make it to their District final last year, a bit of a rarity. Losing 10 seniors to graduation would have decimated most teams, but coach Gary Galla said he has 23 girls out this, year including 13 on the varsity. Of those, seven are returning from last year’s 22-12 squad, including Kori Kahler, Rachelle Brzezinski, Haley Sobczak, Kristen Pleva, Lauren O’Brien, Hannah Therrien, and Katie Drzewiecki.

While he has strength in numbers, Galla said his team has fewer experienced players than his last two teams. “We’re going to be a young team and there will be some learning experiences along the way,” he said.

Pleva is the only returning starter from last year’s team, although Kahler and Brzezinski also saw some playing time.

The Lakers went 7-2 in Northwest Conference play last year, good enough for second place behind Frankfort. This year, the conference is bigger with the addition of Leland, Benzie Central and Buckley. Galla doesn’t foresee any real adjustment for the team since the Lakers played most of the Northwest squads last year in non-league games.

“What is good for us is we have more conference games. We only had nine conference games last year and if you lost one it was a big deal as far as the standings. More teams mean more competition and that is a good thing,” he said.

The favorites to win the conference are once again Frankfort and Kingsley. Galla said although Frankfort lost its star pitcher to graduation, the Panthers still have a strong hitting lineup.

Kingsley has nine seniors on its team. “They will both be tough,” he said. Glen Lake’s first doubleheader of the season is at home against Lake City on April 11.

Both the Leland and Suttons Bay teams are facing similar dilemmas: the need for improvement over last season and getting enough girls to come out and play. The Comets have a new head coach in Joe Nedow, as long-time coach Charlie Gann stepped down after last season. Nedow has 11 girls out for the season, not enough to field both a JV and varsity squad. “Girls soccer and now track have diverted some of the kids who would normally come out for softball. But, the girls I got are very dedicated and really want to be there,” he said.

Six of those girls return from last year’s 5-18 squad: Dena Popp, Danielle Seitter, Kaylah Mendoza, Kaleigh Stinson, Haley VerSnyder and Rhiannon Hildenbrandt. Nedow also has Spanish foreign exchange student Lucia Molinero on the team as well as Kelly Lemar, who returned to Leland for the second half of her senior year after being away since elementary school.

“We have a good core of players. They are very enthusiastic about the season and I can’t wait to get them out on the field,” Nedow said. His biggest concern, outside of numbers and inexperience, is when the fields will be ready for play.

“I’m hoping the weather changes soon and gets dry. One of my concerns is the first time the girls get out on a field will be their first game,” he said. Nedow said Popp and Seitter are helping guide the younger players in picking up the fundamentals of the game. With team numbers as low as they are, Nedow said he is hoping to generate some excitement and interest in Leland softball by fielding a young yet game-savvy team. The Comets open the season at Charlevoix on Wednesday, April 9.

Suttons Bay coach Jen Kloosterman has had a busy early season. In addition to having 16 girls out for the varsity and JV, Kloosterman was busy last week giving birth to a son, Calvin. That means the Kloostermans – husband Kevin is the assistant coach – are juggling schedules to get the Norsemen ready for another softball season while adjusting to having a baby in the house.

“It has been a little hectic, but we are very excited to have Calvin in our lives,” Kloosterman said Tuesday. The Norse have 14 players returning from last year’s 8-25 squad. She is counting on her seniors, Katie Dupree, Elaina Leaureaux, Taylor Mentzer and Christa Nesky, to lead a team dominated by sophomores and juniors. Also returning is sophomore Laureen Schmidt, who will be the starting pitcher, and Kelly Ruthardt, who will be catcher.

“One thing we wanted to work on is our hitting. Kevin said there is a noticeable improvement so far this year. The real test will be when we get outside and on the field,” Kloosterman said. The Norse’s first scheduled game is at home Tuesday against Kalkaska.

The St. Mary team is without a conference this year. No other Cherryland Conference school is fielding a softball team, so the Eagles will continue to play familiar opponents with the goal of going as far as they can in the post-season tournament.

St. Mary has 13 players on varsity and 15 on the JV this spring. Coach Ed Merica will again guide the Eagles, with help from assistant coach and daughter Rose. Unlike the other county teams, the Eagles have plenty of experienced players.

None may be more important than senior Susan Herman, St. Mary’s starting pitcher. Merica said Herman played summer ball with a Traverse City club and he has seen some improvement in her delivery and speed. “Susan has always been a very good pitcher, but he speed is definitely up over last year. That is unusual for a pitcher to improve her speed between her junior and senior year,” he said.

The Eagles will not have senior Sarah Schaub on field this season as a knee injury from basketball has put her on the sidelines. Schaub hit .511 last season and Merica said he is counting on his other experienced hitters like Mary Lingaur and Bradi Pasch to pick up where Schaub left off.

“We’re working on our hitting in the gym. That is something we had trouble with last year, getting enough runs to win a game,” he said. The Eagles went 17-9-1 overall last year and didn’t make it out of the first round of district play against St. Francis last year, losing 1-0. They open the season Friday, April 11 at Frankfort.