• Complete preseason softball ratings
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A longer regular season and an increased distance between pitcher and batter were the most talked-about topics in advance of Thursday's start to the 18th season of high school softball in Nebraska.
The season is starting a week earlier than in past years so teams get seven weeks instead of six to fit in their 17 scheduled dates. The change will be more noticeable next year because by the time it was implemented, most schools already had their dates set.
Easily the biggest game of the new opening week is Saturday's 11:30 a.m. Sarpy County showdown between preseason No. 1 Papillion-La Vista and No. 3 Papillion-La Vista South.
Other noteworthy openers include three 6:30 p.m. games Thursday: Millard West at Ralston, Millard North at Omaha Marian and Class C state runner-up Wayne playing host to Class B state champion Blair. Omaha Gross moved Saturday's Cougar Classic up three weeks, and Papio South will host Ralston in a doubleheader on Wednesday.
Many teams won't play until Aug. 26, while others, like No. 6 Omaha Westside, won't see their first action until Aug. 28, the first big tournament weekend.
Much has been made in other states about moving the pitching rubber from 40 to 43 feet away from home plate. Most coaches don't see it as a major move because summer club teams have used the 43-foot distance for several years.
Games may run a little longer with a few more baserunners creating scoring opportunities, but that's a good thing. A little more offense will create more excitement, but the top pitchers will still dominate games, especially at tournament time.
The preseason ratings aren't markedly different from the final ratings last season. Papillion-La Vista is given the nod over two-time defending champion Lincoln Southwest in Class A, with the champions favored to repeat in the other classes: Blair in Class B and Friend in Class C.
Papillion-La Vista is favored in Class A because of an experienced squad led by Oregon pitching recruit Karissa Hovinga. The Monarchs will need to generate more offense than they did a year ago to replace Southwest at the top.
Coach Todd Petersen will have most of his starting infield back: Kelsey Hylen at first, Steph Irvin at second and Molly Middleton at third. Emily Drummy and Kelsey Whipple are juniors who started in the outfield a year ago, leaving the Monarchs to find replacements at shortstop and catcher as well as another outfielder.
Southwest gets the nod over a group of four others for the preseason No. 2 spot. The Silver Hawks' cupboard isn't bare, but two-time All-Nebraska pitcher Becca Changstrom has moved on to Creighton.
Junior Tania Carroll was an All-Nebraska outfielder last year, but look for her to get a lot of time in the circle this year as one of seven players back with starting experience for the Silver Hawks.
Papio South has two of the state's best hitters in seniors Alli Mathewson and Kaiti Williams, but the Titans need to find a dependable pitcher to make a serious run in the postseason. Last year's Class A runner-up, Lincoln North Star, also has some weapons back, but pitcher Paige Policky is gone, leaving the pitching duty in the capable hands of junior Kiley Harpst.
Millard South just missed out on a state berth a year ago but is loaded with experienced talent, including a three-deep rotation of senior Jessica Petersen and juniors Taylor Erlenbusch and Chrissy Harris. Westside also has several players back from the team that finished third at state last season.
Blair lost most of its starters but returns three solid pieces of the puzzle: Michigan State recruit Carly Nielsen at pitcher, two-time All-Nebraska pick Presley Glaser at second base and junior Michelle Trulin in center field. Norris and Beatrice also earned spots in the preseason all-class Top 10 with several players back from their state tournament teams.
Friend was an easy choice to repeat in Class C because all but one starter return from last season's state title team, including all-class honorary captain Krista Menke at pitcher. Her overpowering fastball and a strong supporting cast both on offense and defense helped give the Bulldogs the nod over Wahoo and Wayne.
Contact the writer:
490-9714, alexsdad@mail.com
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