Spotlight still on stable Springstead

In terms of results, Springstead has never enjoyed a better season than it did in 2011.

The Lady Eagles, who went 21-3, set new school standards for most wins in a season, most consecutive wins (18), most runs scored (167) and most homers (11).

They also garnered their first district championship since 2003 and repeated as county champ for the first time.

But that's all in the rearview mirror. Looking forward, though, the prospects remain bright for 2012.

Springstead suffered two significant personnel hit, losing All-County first baseman Shannon Cataldo to graduation and All-County center fielder Anna Poholek to basketball.

What remains is an accomplished core led by reigning Player of the Year and pitching ace Alexis Adams.

"I think when you have pitching you have a chance, and everybody knows what Alexis can do," Springstead Head Coach Craig Swartout said. "We're just hoping to get the freshmen on board and try to win a few games."

What the hard-throwing senior Adams did last season was go 21-3 with a 1.01 earned run average and nine shutouts, striking out 164 batters in 159 innings.

She also hit .461 with four home runs and 33 runs batted in.

"For Alexis the sky is the limit," Swartout said. "She worked this summer to pick up a few more miles per hour on her pitches. I'm real excited to see what she's going to do. She's got all the tools to make this one of those years you talk about for a while."

The Lady Eagles, though, are far from a one-woman show.

With seniors Lizzy Markidis at second base and Brittany Martinez at shortstop, Springstead has experience in the middle of the infield.

Junior Hailey Drawe at third base joins those two as returning All-County selections. Drawe hit .458 as a sophomore, second on the team behind Adams.

Markidis batted .391 with four homers, 21 RBI and 33 runs scored. Martinez posted a .351 average to complement sterling defense.

Swartout, starting his 10th season at the helm, noted that the team would lean on those four, "But I really think our freshmen class is going to be a special class. They're very smart, very softball savvy. I'm excited to see what they'll be able to do."

Those freshmen include utility player Shelbi Ard, pitcher/first baseman Louise Disi and catcher Brooke Fischbach.

If those three can help fill the void left by Cataldo and Poholek, the Lady Eagles would be in line to compete for another district crown.

With the new district realignment, Springstead finds itself in Class 6A, District 6 with Central, Citrus, Lecanto and Ocala-West Port.

Only Lecanto reached regionals among that group last year, as the 4A-8 runner-up.

"We'd like to win the district and go to the state playoffs, I think every coach wants to do that," Swartout said. "The goal is to go out and play hard every game. If we do that, we'll start to win a few games and we'll see where we go from there."

While 2011 was a banner year for Springstead, it was a down one for Hernando Christian Academy.

Of course, the Lady Lions still went 25-2 and advanced to regionals. However, their streak of seven straight district titles and two consecutive Final Four appearances came to an end when they surprisingly dropped their final two contests.

"I think when you're in the situation we're in, last season was a disappointment," HCA Head Coach Mike Drummond said. "The standard of play at HCA has been exemplary. We have a long-standing tradition built in softball; anything less than a district championship is a disappointment."

Drummond, the school's athletic director, takes over as headman from Hall of Famer Ernie Chatman.

Though not retired, Chatman has stepped away from coaching this season. Yet he still works individually with players such as the Lady Lions' junior pitcher Ashley McKay.

"I'm not Ernie Chatman," Drummond said. "So I've got big shoes to fill."

That goes for McKay, too. She must take over on the mound fulltime since All-County pitcher Kala Thompson transferred back to South Sumter.

In her one season with the Lady Lions, Thompson was also the county's leading hitter, with a gaudy .662 average.

McKay was 7-0 with a 0.38 ERA, striking out 70 batters across 37.1 frames, and was the county's second-leading hitter behind Thompson at .493 while driving in 36 runs.

Aside from Thompson, the Lady Lions' next seven top hitters from 2011 are back – including seniors Heather Drummond, Briana Hogan, Rebecca Maldonado and Kaitlyn Lowe; junior Holly Field and freshman Ryleigh D'Ambrosio.

Many of those players are also on the girls basketball team, coached by Mike Drummond, which remains alive with a regional quarterfinal on Tuesday.

That could certainly impact how HCA performs out of the gate, and will likely force some early-season changes to the schedule.

"Early on the bats are going to struggle, but we've got girls in the lineup who can swing the bat," Coach Drummond said. "But if we play great defense, and I think we're capable of playing great defense, and we get great pitching from Ashley (McKay), I think we'll be pretty competitive."

The Lady Lions are in tiny 2A-4 with just Academy at the Lakes and Seven Rivers Christian.

"It sounds easy, but Academy at the Lakes is pretty good," Drummond said. "It's going to be a battle. They've got pitching and they've got some athletes down there. In my estimation, they're the team to beat."

The county's remaining three varsity squads – Weeki Wachee will only field a junior varsity team – are generally rebuilding.

Hernando had a 13-12 mark in 2011, but lost All-County catcher Megan Platt via graduation. Freshman Megan Lanes takes her place behind the plate.

"We brought a lot of girls back who played a lot of innings," seventh-year Hernando Head Coach Kevin Bittinger said. We're not an immature team like we were last year. We're a year older and so I hope that helps out on the field."

Bittinger feels his team must rely on its pitching depth and defense, "and hopefully we've got a little bit of team speed."

Sophomore Courtney Riddle, after pitching HCA to two Final Fours, was a respectable 8-4 with 2.43 ERA as a freshman transfer with the Lady Leopards.

Riddle, senior third baseman Shelbie Goodwin and sophomore shortstop Tana McDaniel joined Platt on the All-County team last year.

Hernando will hope to make some noise in 5A-7, which features Crystal River, Dunnellon, Eustis, Nature Coast and Tavares. Crystal River, Dunnellon and Tavares were all district runners-up in 2011.

"I think we're middle of the pack. I think we'll go out and win some games, but if we don't play like we're supposed to we're going to lose games," said Bittinger, calling Dunnellon the team to beat.

"We got out of one tough district and got into another one. But it can only make you better."

Nature Coast has a new yet familiar head coach in Kristin Peeples. Now the athletic director at the school, she guided the Lady Sharks during their first three varsity seasons.

"When I coached we had just started," said Peeples, who posted an 11-54 record during that first stint. "We had a lot of players who had never played before.

"These kids have been playing competitive ball. They're out there with the goal in mind to play at the next level. With that brings higher expectations on the coach."

After three straight winning seasons, Nature Coast slipped to 7-12 last season.

Jeri Loffler is the lone returning All-County selection, having hit .300. The senior will move from catcher to first base this year.

"We're young, but I think we'll surprise some people," Peeples said. "I feel we will compete in our district and we're going to give some teams a run for their money."

Central (6-18 2011) is also fielding a largely inexperienced crew under fifth-year Head Coach Tyson Ellis.

The bright spot is junior third baseman Katie McCarthy, an All-County pick behind a .400 average and 24 RBI.

"We're real young. It's going to be every day just battling," Ellis said. "Hopefully we progress every day and just get better. We're building."

CENTRAL LADY BEARS

Head coach: Tyson Ellis (5th year)

District: 6A-6

2011 record: 6-18 (0-6 5A-7, lost in district semifinals)

Key losses: Sam Berberette, Kelsey McManus, Koryn Rivers.

Key returnees: Hannah Charlwood (So., OF/INF), Alex Eisenhauer (So., C), Katie McCarthy (Jr., 3B), Whitney Roberts (So., SS), Rhy Venturella (Jr., OF/INF), Casey Vsetula (So., P).

Key newcomers: Marisa Adams (Fr., C), Kayla Conlon (Sr., OF), Heather Goodwin (Fr., UTIL), Rachelle MacLean (Jr., 1B), Aaliyah Roberts (So., OF), Breanna Warren (Sr., 2B).

Coach's outlook: "We're real young. It's going to be every day just battling. … Hopefully we progress every day and just get better. We're building."

HERNANDO LADY LEOPARDS

Head coach: Kevin Bittinger (7th year)

District: 5A-7

2011 record: 13-12 (5-3 4A-8, lost in district semifinals)

Key losses: Remi Manuel, Megan Platt, Hailey Royal, Whitney Sims.

Key returnees: Brittany Flannery (Sr., P), Shelbie Goodwin (Sr., 3B), Destiny Hunter (Sr., RF), Lauren Johnson (Sr., 2B), Tana McDaniel (So., SS), Courtney Riddle (So., P), Ashley Sims (Jr., CF).

Key newcomers: Megan Lane (Fr., C), Jessica Pinto (Jr., OF/C), Summer Solovitch (So., INF), Jamie Stoots (Jr., OF)

Coach's outlook: "We brought a lot of girls back who played a lot of innings. We're not an immature team like we were last year. We're a year older and so I hope that helps out on the field."

HERNANDO CHRISTIAN LADY LIONS

Head coach: Mike Drummond (1st year)

District: 2A-4

2011 record: 25-2 (6-0 1A-8, district runners-up, lost in regional quarterfinals)

Key losses: Alice Bronson, Kala Thompson.

Key returnees: Ryleigh D'Ambrosio (Fr., 2B), Heather Drummond (Sr.,3B), Holly Field (Jr., C), Briana Hogan (Sr., CF), Chelsea Lowe (Fr., 1B), Rebecca Maldonado (Sr., RF), Ashley McKay (Jr., P), Kaitlyn Lowe (Sr., SS), Darlene Simpson (Sr., LF).

Key newcomers: Madison Frazier (Fr., UTIL), Cayla Phillips (7th, OF), Kendall Young (8th, OF).

Coach's outlook: "Early on the bats are going to struggle, but we've got girls in the lineup who can swing the bat. But if we play great defense, and I think we're capable of playing great defense, and we get great pitching from Ashley (McKay), I think we'll be pretty competitive."

NATURE COAST LADY SHARKS

Head coach: Kristin Peeples (1st year back, 4th overall)

District: 5A-7

2011 record: 7-12 (2-6 4A-8, lost in district quarterfinals)

Key losses: Nikki Beverley, Angie Gaffney, Brooke Sager.

Key returnees: Mariah Crawford (Jr., P), Jeri Loffler (Sr., 1B), Dana Mackiewicz (Jr., CF).

Key newcomers: Courtney David (Fr., OF), Katherine Gonzalez (Fr., 3B/P), Brianna Harvey (Fr., C).

Coach's outlook: "We're young, but I think we'll surprise some people. I feel we will compete in our district and we're going to give some teams a run for their money."

SPRINGSTEAD LADY EAGLES

Head coach: Craig Swartout (10th year)

District: 6A-6

2011 record: 21-3 (6-0 5A-7, district champions, lost in regional quarterfinals)

Key losses: Shannon Cataldo, Anna Poholek.

Key returnees: Alexis Adams (Sr., P), Hailey Drawe (Jr., 3B), Lizzy Markidis (Sr., 2B), Brittany Martinez (Sr., SS).

Key newcomers: Shelbi Ard (Fr., UTIL), Louise Disi (Fr., P/1B), Brooke Fischbach (Fr., C).

Coach's outlook: "I think when you have pitching you have a chance, and everybody knows what Alexis (Adams) can do. We're just hoping to get the freshmen on board and try to win a few games."