Nip and tuck

Teams leave starting gate locked in tight battle for division

Advertisement

Last season, Silverado and Coronado were the class of the Southeast Division, and this spring appears to be no different.

Both teams started the season undefeated in the division and appeared to be in a dogfight for the Southeast crown, with both squads having solid pitching and plenty of hitting.

The Skyhawks (27-9 last year) soared off to a 5-0 start in league and an 11-1 overall mark for new coach Nick Brockovich, Silverado's fourth in the last five years.

Despite losing ace pitcher Kelly Griego and Sophi Vinci to graduation, the Skyhawks return junior catcher Amanda Edmondson (.460, 24 RBIs last year) and seem to have enough firepower to play with anyone in town.

Pitchers Katie Devlin and Jessie Rivas give Brockovich a couple of decent starters to work with, while Shannon Goble, Amy Aceret, Mikayla Thielges, Kelsey Avagliano, Amanda Buchholz and Taree Heckman can hit and ensure the Skyhawks will score some runs this spring.

With its solid start in the league, Silverado, ranked No. 4 in Southern Nevada Class 4A by the Las Vegas Review-Journal in its April 20 poll, had almost already guaranteed itself a spot in the postseason, which begins with regional play on May 10.

Contending with the Skyhawks for the league title will be Coronado (34-8-1), coached by Shari Ziedler. After being eliminated in the 2005 playoffs by rival Silverado, the Cougars have come back even stronger this season, bolstered by a senior-heavy roster.

And whereas most teams have maybe two starters to hand the ball to, Ziedler said she enjoys the luxury of having four such hurlers on her squad.

"I'm pretty fortunate in that I have four pitchers on my team," Ziedler said. "We've thrown Nyshele Miller, Tristina Shibata, Berlynn Bagley and Brittany Day so far. It's nice because I can mix my pitchers up and kind of throw the other team off balance."

Coronado and its staff were keeping opponents off balance, starting the season with a 16-2-1 record and a 4-0 mark in the Southeast. Ziedler said she was pleased with the start.

"I'm real happy," she said. "They came together faster than I thought they would, but right now they're where they need to be."

Coronado's only two losses at press time came to the same team -- Canyon View, Utah (2-0, 2-1) -- in the Kingman Invitational in late March, when the Cougars brought home a third-place finish.

Helping the Cougars off to their start -- they were ranked No. 2 in the city behind 2005 state runners-up Sierra Vista in the Review-Journal's rankings -- was a potent batting lineup which was providing more than enough offense.

"We're real strong offensively," Ziedler said. "I couldn't complain about that."

Leading the way at the plate was senior shortstop Candice Harris, who was leading the Cougars in hitting (.486) and had 14 RBIs at press time.

Also doing their part were Shibata (.444, 15 RBIs), Bagley (.422, 13 RBIs), Sarah Detwiler (.438, 11 RBIs), Lacey Beckberger (.364), Day (.367), Liz Plese (8 RBIs), Biana Query (.400, 13 RBIs), Kelsey Fahr (.333), Candace Tschagi and senior Miller (.333), who also tossed a no-hitter against Chaparral on March 27 and struck out nine batters.

After coming close to a trip upstate last year and having an experienced roster with a deep pitching staff and a strong batting lineup this spring, hopes are high for Coronado.

"Our goal is to just take one game at a time," Ziedler said. "But ultimately, I've had most of these kids now since they were freshmen so I've had them in my program for four years and just like any other team, everybody's dream is to make it to state. Last year we were one game short of making it to the regional championship game, so if we can make it there and do what we need to do, to hopefully have a trip to Reno would be nice."

Coronado showed how talented its team was at the Fred Davison Memorial softball tournament, April 10, at West Flamingo Park, where it defeated No. 3 Cimarron-Memorial, 3-1, and then beat El Capitan (Calif), 9-1.

Coach Tom Mayes and Foothill (20-15) started this campaign out 8-4 and 2-2 in the Southeast, and although the Falcons may not have the players or the reputation of Silverado and Coronado, they have as much heart as any team in the league, according to Ziedler.

"Foothill comes out from the beginning of the game to the end of the game without quitting," Ziedler said.

Leading the way for Foothill is senior center fielder Holly Gerhardt (.416 in 2005), a fast player who can track down fly balls in the outfield with the best in town, and senior infielder Vanessa Stevenson.

Helping the two Falcons seniors get their team off to its start were Shantel Straily, Brandy Yamka and Shelbie Medrano, who had their share of game-winning hits this spring, as well as pitcher Holly Jones.

Fighting Foothill for a playoff berth should be Green Valley (13-12), coached by Mary Scales. Although the Gators lost talent to graduation, Green Valley started the spring off 5-5 overall and 1-3 in the Southeast and was in position to battle Foothill, Basic and Liberty for the two playoff berths perennial powerhouses Silverado and Coronado would not get.

Lindsey Headley (.348, 10 RBIs), Ashley Artmann (.500) and Hope Flanagan (10 RBIs) are quality players for Green Valley, but in such a competitive division this year, the Gators might be happy to make the postseason.

Basic (6-12), coached by Melanie Ust, is in a similar position as Foothill and Green Valley and should battle for a postseason berth down the homestretch. Led by Aaren Fisher (.519, 12 RBIs), Steph Cinkovich (.438) and Cortney Breeden (.414, eight RBIs), the Wolves started out 6-5 overall and 1-3 in the league and don't have as much depth as some other Southeast counterparts.

Kaitlyn Dunham, Lacey Santiago, Taylor Sandoval and Carissa Kohley provide Basic with some nice options, but a 9-0 shutout on April 9 to Silverado revealed there may be some distance between the haves and have-nots in the Southeast.

Liberty (4-24), coached by Anthony Elliott, started the season out with almost twice as many wins (7-8 overall) as it had all of last season, but the Patriots are still a young team and face the task of fighting Foothill, Green Valley and Basic for a playoff spot.

Freshmen Robin Lowery (.462) and Kristina Foti (.326) were hitting the cover off the ball to start the spring, and the Patriots have an experienced infield with seniors Megan Lundwall and juniors Gabi Lopez and Brea Silva.

A postseason appearance seems to be within reach, should Liberty upset a Southeast foe or two down the line.

Second-year school Del Sol (4-17), coached by Lance Jarrell, started the season out 2-9 overall and 1-4 in the league and is still trying to build a solid program in such a competitive division for the future.

With a 13-2 road win on April 7 at Liberty, where Erin Miller and Lisa Kosinki had two hits apiece, the Dragons equaled their 2005 league win mark and gained some confidence for the future. Coronado's Ziedler had two teams in the division on her radar.

"To be honest with you, Foothill's always the underlying team that people underestimate. They come out and give you a game, and that's who I feel the threat from this year, is probably Foothill and Silverado," Ziedler said. "Liberty is well-coached. They just upset Green Valley the other day and Basic is upsetting people as they're coming along this season, but my fear is Foothill and Silverado."

Despite all the talent on her own team and in her Southeast Division, Ziedler still thinks the toughest team in the region dwells in the Northeast Division.

"In our region, I would say the top team would be Las Vegas," Ziedler said.

Southeast Division play continues today, when Foothill hosts Coronado, Del Sol welcomes Green Valley, and Liberty hosts Silverado. On Wednesday, Basic hosts Silverado, Green Valley hosts Coronado, and Del Sol welcomes Foothill. All games begin at 3:30 p.m.