Gauchos are young but experienced

Young Casa softball players even better as sophomores|

About the only thing new about the Casa Grande High School softball team is its league.

As the Gauchos enter the new Vine Valley Athletic League, they return almost all the key components to a team that compiled a 15-8 record last season, shared the North Bay League championship and won a North Coast Section playoff game.

The returners include the tough pitching tandem of Katie Humphreys and Katie Machado. The duo was dominant as sophomores last season, accounting for all the Casa wins (and all their losses).

Humphreys was a second-team all-league choice and probably should have been ranked higher. She was 9-4 on the season with a 2.40 earned-run average, but her really eye-popping number was 142. That is the number she struck out in 102 pitching innings.

“Machado looks good, too,” understates Casa coach Scott Sievers of a hurler who was 6-4 with a 2.26 earned-run average along with 43 strikeouts in 55 innings.

Skylar Thorpe, one of a number of freshmen to make major contributions to last season’s successful team, will catch. She hit .305 with power (two doubles and three triples in 22 games).

Another of last year’s fabulous freshmen, Emily Hart, returns at first base. She is the team’s leadoff hitter, and she is looking to improve on last season’s solid .293 batting average.

Sophomore Meghan Bendik will also play some at first base and can also pitch. She has an excellent eye at the plate and led the team in walks last season, despite a limited number of plate appearances.

Cassidy Cole, one of just three seniors on the team, brings strong defense to second base.

Sophomore Emma Hughes can also play solid defense up the middle.

Another sophomore, Mo Lynch, is exceptional with both bat and glove at shortstop. She was an all-league choice last season, batting .342 with five home runs.

Ava Luiz is back at third base after a strong freshman season. Humphreys will also see time at that position.

The outfield will have senior Sam Dedrickson, a three-year starter, back in left field. Not only is she a good defender, but she hit .277 last season with 16 RBIs.

Junior Regan Laubscher brings good speed and a clutch .279 average to center field.

Machado will play right field when she isn’t pitching, sharing duties with Ashley Casper who can also play second base and help in the pitcher’s circle as well.

A place in the lineup will have to be found for the bat of senior Presley Ruoff, who is coming back from arm surgery. She led the team with a .417 batting average last season.

Sievers is pleased with the team he will take into the first year of the Vine Valley Athletic League, but he admits he knows very little about most of the other teams in the league.

“We’ve played Petaluma and Sonoma Valley, but we haven’t played the Napa teams,” he points out. “We’ve often tried to scrimmage them, but we haven’t played them.

“We just have to play our game and minimize mistakes.”

One thing the coach knows is that his players are not only good in the field, but also in the classroom.

The team grade point average last year was 3.55 and this season it is 3.43 so far.

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