Mar 16, 2016 5 min read

The balance of power in Section 1-A high school girls softball might be shifting to the west, as in West Greene.

The Pioneers return all of their starters from last season’s WPIAL playoff team and, with the addition of a strong freshman class, they could make a stronger run in a section that produced both WPIAL finalists in Class A a year ago.

“Yeah, we’re excited,” said veteran Pioneers head coach Bill Simms. “But Jefferson-Morgan and Chartiers-Houston are the defending co-champions. Jeff-Morgan should still be good. And, historically speaking, when they’ve been in Class A, the road seems to always go through Chartiers-Houston.”

That could change this season.

West Greene, which went 6-4 in section play and 10-8 overall last season, could have the best 1-2 pitching and hitting combo in the section, if not Class A, in senior Bailey Bennington, a California University recruit, and sophomore Madison Renner.

Bennington, a career .500 hitter who enters the season with 458 career strikeouts, was the Pioneers’ ace in her first two seasons. But last season she split time in the circle with Renner, who batted .480 with five homers and 30 RBI.

“Actually, we have four or five solid pitchers,” said Simms. “We have the 1-2 tandem of Bennington and Renner, but (freshman) Kaitlyn Rizor would be a 12- to 14-game winner for a lot of teams and (freshman) McKenna Lampe is a lefty who is always around the plate. Sage Vliet also threw some innings for us last season. We’re pretty deep there.”

The addition of Rizor, McKenna Lampe and her sister Madison are three additions that have helped raise expectations. West Greene has done well in fall leagues the last couple of years against solid competition.

With those expectations, however, also comes more pressure.

“We want to make sure we max out with this group,” said Simms. “That’s why we’re going with the best starting group even though we’ve got everybody back. If there’s a freshman who’s better, the freshman is going to play.”

Jefferson-Morgan defeated section-rival Chartiers-Houston to win its first WPIAL championship and returns a strong core of players.

But longtime head coach Tony Barbetta has to replace a pair of All-District players in pitcher Maddie Ludrosky and catcher Regan Rush, the latter is a starter as a freshman at Seton Hill.

Ludrosky, a three-year starter who batted .400 last season, went 15-4 a year ago with 170 strikeouts and a 0.69 ERA. Rush batted .535 and struck out just once in 68 at-bats.

The Rockets do, however, have Kayla Yorko, Nikki Venick, Autumn Tedrow, Morgan Simkovic and Camryn Dugan, among others, returning returning from last year’s squad. That should be enough to compete for another playoff spot, if not more.

Coach Tricia Alderson has faced rebuilding seasons at Chartiers-Houston. Typically, that rebuilding is more of a reloading.

Alderson has had more players in the past than the 11 on this year’s roster. All are underclassmen.

Alderson compared the roster turnover to 2008, when she lost six starters. In 2009, the Bucs went 22-2 and won a PIAA championship. She also had a young squad in 2004 after losing eight seniors. That team, which had no seniors and just four juniors, went 21-2 and reached the PIAA finals.

“We know everything is not going to happen overnight,” Alderson said. “But we’re not going to make excuses. We’ve got some juniors who are ready to play and sophomores and freshmen who are excited to get a chance to play.”

Down six starters from a team that lost, 3-2, to Jefferson-Morgan in the WPIAL finals, the Bucs aren’t as experienced. But one of the returnees is All-District pitcher Kaitlyn Dittrich, who was 19-4 with a 1.00 ERA in 133 innings. A control specialist, Dittrich struck out 72 and walked only 16 as a freshman, while holding opponents to a .216 average.

“We know she’ll throw strikes,” said Alderson. “It’s a matter of finding where the pieces best fit. We’re going to be a work in progress, but we’ll see what happens.”

The Greyhounds finished second in Section 2-A last season with a 7-3 record and went 11-4 overall, earning a spot in the WPIAL playoffs for the first time in school history.

But head coach Bo Teets must replace three four-year starters from that team, shortstop Cara Grogan, catcher Alexa Vatakis and second baseman Taylor Guzzie. That won’t be easy.

Monessen does have the strong arm of sophomore pitcher Dana Vatakis, which will help.

The offense figures to be strong again with Vatakis (.422, 20 RBI) and Shelby Minardi (.526, 20 RBI) leading the way.

The Trojans have a new head coach in Tom Glawinski and will be looking to improve on a 2-14 finish that included a 2-8 record in Section 2-A. On the positive side, nearly everyone is back, with just one senior lost to graduation.

The Maples were in contention last season in Section 1-A, going 4-6 in the section, and 10-6 overall. Sophomore pitcher Mackenzie Cree and senior Madison Bogden could help the Maples contend for a playoff spot.

Back-to-back wins over Cornell and Fort Cherry in early March were the highlight of Avella’s 2-13 season. The Eagles take a 10-game losing streak into the season, having been outscored 166-10 in those games.

The Rangers are coming off a 1-13 season that included a 1-9 record in Section 1-A. Trying to make up ground in what again figures to be a section that is loaded at the top won’t be easy, though top hitter Riley Carter returns.