New Players Add Vitality To Blackhawks

Thu., March 20, 1997

John Miller Correspondent

West Plains softball

Every so often, coaches open their first practice of the season with a host of bright, young and - here’s the key - unfamiliar faces staring back at them.

Granted, it might be nice to have a championship team full of experienced players every year, admits Kirk Madison, whose Cheney softball team is chock-full of underclassmen this year. But an inexperienced squad every now and again somehow helps squeeze the best from his program, he said.

“It’s kind of revitalizing to get the younger kids who are real motivated,” Madison said. “There’s no lock on varsity spots, so these kids are going to be working hard to nail down some of those positions.”

Across the West Plains at Medical Lake, coach John Higgins is right where he wants to be after two years of rebuilding his softball team.

“The last two years, I’ve tried to bring up a lot of sophomores to build on,” he said. “I figured this year and next year we’d be doing pretty well.”

In all, seven returning juniors will see plenty of playing time for the Cardinals, who finished in fifth place a year ago in the Northeast A but have much higher hopes this season.

Cheney dropped to fifth place in the Frontier League last year on a senior-dominated team; eight kids graduated in 1996. Katie Rotchford, a senior catcher, leads the returners, which include senior outfielder Ginger Ewing.

Jessica Laslie, a junior second base player, and sophomore pitcher Kira Bliss are the two other returners with experience on the varsity team.

“I’ll probably be starting half sophomores,” coach Madison said. “We’ll be young, but we hope to improve over the season.”

Cheney kicks off its season Monday with a test against North Central from the Greater Spokane League.

Medical Lake’s Kim Erickson, a junior centerfielder who her coach says may have college-level skills, is one reason the Cardinals look to be on the rise.

Amanda Monroe is another. The junior enters her third year of shouldering the pitching duties for ML. Juniors Missy Reid, a third-base player, first-base player Jessica Ramirez, leftfielder Jessica Muelken and catcher Rianna Simmons help form the nucleus of the ML team.

Three seniors, including shortstop Kathryn Connolly, catcher Michelle Early, and second-base player Tria Tschirley will provide important leadership in close games, coach Higgins said. After all, the word in Northeast A circles this season is parity.

“Last year we thought Newport and Lakeside would be in there for the league title, but Kettle Falls came out on top,” Higgins said. “This year, the league again should be pretty strong from top to bottom.”

Sophomores Jamie Madnick, a pitcher, Jennifer Crawford, an outfielder, and Carissa Rohner, a second basemen, round out the Cardinal team, which opens its season Saturday with a tournament in Medical Lake.

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