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| Aroostook Republican file photo Daniele Pelkey makes a throw across the diamond during one of Limestone-MSSM’s playoff games in 2012. Pelkey is the only senior on the Eagles’ roster this year and her leadership will be vital if the team is to make another successful run. The team was scheduled to begin its season with a road game against Wisdom Tuesday. |
By Kevin Sjoberg
Sports Reporter
LIMESTONE — Coach Ryan O’Neal expects some “growing pains” with this year’s youthful roster, but still remains optimistic about the prospects of the Limestone-MSSM varsity softball team.
The fifth-year coach has plenty of firepower to replace from last year’s team that went 14-3 overall and lost to eventual Class D state champion Penobscot Valley in the semifinals.
Not only did the team lose three starters to graduation in Amanda Allen, Stephanie Leighton and Karen Page, two others (Jordyn Hopkins and Michaela Garrett) elected not to return to the team.
“They combined for about 50 percent of our hits, runs scored and RBIs,” O’Neal said. “In short, we lost tons of experience and most of what would have been our returning speed.”
Still, the Eagles have retooled with some talented underclassmen and O’Neal said the team should remain competitive.
The pitching will be handled by the duo of Melissa Cantafio and Ellyzabeth Bencivenga, and O’Neal said both are capable of keeping his team in every game. Whoever doesn’t pitch will play third base. Cantafio, a junior, is also the team’s top power hitter. She batted .500, hit two homers and collected 10 other extra- base hits. Bencivenga is coming off a solid freshman campaign and “is looking like she has stepped up her game this year,” O’Neal said.
The team’s lone senior is Daniele Pelkey, who will return as the starting shortstop and is penciled into the No. 3 spot in the batting order. O’Neal said she will eclipse 100 career hits sometime early in the season and is “a rock” in the lineup.
Junior Kelsee Albert is back for her third season as the starting catcher. She will also be expected to drive in runs from the middle of the order.
The remainder of the lineup consists of newcomers. Sophomore Annie Sinclair will start out in right field, freshman Jackie Peers gets the nod at second base, freshman Kassee Albert is the opening-day left field starter, Chesley Pelkey will be the center fielder and is another freshman, as is new first baseman Madeline Williams.
“We have a good group of hitters,” O’Neal said. “From one through nine in the order, we are stronger than we were a year ago.”
O’Neal has only two players available to come off the bench, and both are freshmen. Sarah Hemphill will see time at second base and right field, while Leah Kihn will serve as a courtesy runner and can fill in at the middle infield positions.
“We have a small but dedicated group of players who show up to work every day,” O’Neal said. “In the gym, we got to work on our fundamentals on defense and are also focused on preparing ourselves for fast pitching, which we may not see much during the season, but we would rather adjust to slower throwers than [in the playoffs] to have only two days to prepare for the quickest pitchers in Class D.”
He said with freshmen and sophomores making up two thirds of the lineup, he expects some stumbles along the way.
“Don’t get me wrong, they are good players,” he said, “but when you are relying on that much youth on a daily basis, there are bound to be a few extra errors.”
O’Neal’s assistant coaches are a couple of his former players — Victoria St. Pierre and Ashlynn Kelly.
