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North softball to feature mixed bag of talent A blend of veteran leadership and several underclassmen comprises the 2008 Williamsville North softball roster. How they mix as a team will determine how far the Lady Spartans can go this spring. "The outlook for North softball is bright," said North coach Rick Bubar. "We have seven seniors on the roster, but we are also very young at several key positions. If the new players to the varsity perform as well as I think they can, we will have an excellent season. You really don't know until you see the players in game conditions." The team will be led by senior tri-captains Tricia Kennery, Kristen Weber and Kerri Bubar. "These girls have all been with North softball from the seventh grade and bring a lot of leadership to the program," said coach Bubar. "Tricia and Kristen both played on the state winning field hockey team, and Kerri was a captain of the swimming team that won the ECIC Championships. These girls all know what it takes to win championships, and I hope that transfers to the softball team as well." Kennery is a returning ECIC Division I first-team all-star pitcher. "The strength for our team lies in pitching," said coach Bubar. "Tricia is a veteran pitcher who understands the game. We also have two outstanding young pitchers coming up. Nicole Attea is only in eighth grade but will be an excellent pitcher before her career is done, and the same can be said for ninth-grader Robin Kennery." Tricia Kennery might hit cleanup in the batting order. Kerri Bubar will start the season in right field. Weber can play at first and third base. Returning for her second year is junior catcher Amanda Maraschiello, an ECIC I second team selection. Two freshmen will start in the middle of the infield. Corrin Genovese will start at shortstop and Robin Kennery will start at second. Both played JV last year. Genovese may lead off the batting order. Junior Caitlin Riegel will play in center field. "We are going to count heavily on several new players to the team," said coach Bubar. "There will be games where we could start seven underclassmen. We are real young up the middle but I believe that is where our strength lies. I have been real impressed with our batting so far but we will have to see real live pitching and game action to really determine who will play where. There is only so much you can see in the gym." The starting open positions are left field, third base and first base. Coach Bubar said senior Kristin Ball appears headed for the left field opening-day spot. Ball is also the backup catcher. Senior Leslie Ahern can also play at first and third base. Junior Kayleigh Galliher will see time at third and second base. The infield reserves will be junior Jamie Atkins and seniors Jennifer Kelly and Erica Stricko. Junior Alexis Messina will back up the outfield and catch. Attea will see time as a reserve pitcher, first baseman and outfieldler. Coach Bubar said team goals are winning the section title, but with youth at key positions, it might difficult. "If the girls play like I think they are capable of playing, we will be very competitive," said coach Bubar. North finished 15-11 overall and 9-5 in ECIC I. They lost to Clarence in the Section VI Class AA semifinals. "They will be a very tough team again this year, but I feel with our pitching, we should be at least as good as we were last year," said coach Bubar. Coach Bubar also sees Frontier and Lancaster as tough teams in the league as well.
North plays in the North Tonawanda and Depew Tournaments and will also face Section V's Aquinas and Mercy in nonleague games. |
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