2021 Season Summary From the Stands and Online Games
Posted: Mon Jun 07, 2021 10:06 am
2021 Regular Season
SOC II
Wheelersburg: Probably the strongest team in the area with big bats in Eaton and Hughes. Solid youthful pitching in Howard that will carry them for a while. Several younger players that know how to play the game. Tough loss this year with the shortstop Eller.
South Webster: A lot of talent in Webster. They played a great matchup with Wheelersburg earlier this season. Messer is a very good pitcher and has been a great leader for this team. This team has a bright future ahead of them moving forward.
West: McDermott is as good of a pitcher as any of the top pitchers in the surrounding counties. Rollins provided a big bat this year as a freshman and will only get better as she gets older. West has some pieces to be a tough SOC II team.
Minford: Blevins is one of the better all around players in the SOC. She has speed, power and versatility to play a couple different positions. Minford seemed a bit young this year, but played some good softball in a tough conference.
Waverly: They have some very talented players and are going to lose some to graduation. Lucky they have some young talent on their roster and some coming up that will keep them competitive in the SOC.
Oak Hill, Valley, Northwest, Eastern will need to rely on some young talent coming in to improve on their seasons. Based on information I’ve heard Valley has some young players coming that should make an impact over the next few years and can put them right back in the mix. Northwest is losing a solid player in Burchett to graduation and that’s a big gap to fill.
SOC I
Notre Dame: Probably the best overall pitching staff in the area with Sparks and Ford. They lose a couple key contributors after this season to graduation, but having two pitchers that can keep teams honest will continue to keep them at the top of the smaller SOC.
Clay: Lutz is one of the best pitchers in both divisions of the SOC and Bazler has been a solid battery mate for the Clay pitching staff for four years. The graduate some core players and leaves me to wonder what players can fill those voids.
Symmes Valley: They are always competitive and coached well. It must be something in the water out in Willow Wood that always brings competitive softball talent through the system. Look for them to challenge ND for the top spot next season.
New Boston, Green Western, Sciotoville will need to hit the reset button. I say the key to some success at these smaller schools is to develop a young pitcher and catcher, and get a few kids playing travel softball, and your teams will improve.
OVC
Ironton: Moore is one of the more dominate pitchers in the area and will continue to improve as she finishes her high school career next season. She led Ironton to an OVC title as well as having a good year at the plate.
Portsmouth: Possibly the biggest turnaround team in the area. Strong play from Perry at shortstop and at the plate as well as solid years from Ramey and Dickerson. In the circle Phillips has been able to keep hitters honest. This is a young team with some good years ahead of them.
Coal Grove: They had a solid year, but lose two key players in Dillow and Griffith to graduation. They still have some starters coming back next year, but will need to fill some big voids next season.
Rock Hill: similar to Coal Grove they will lose some key players to graduation in Hanshaw and Howard. They have been consistently middle of the pack in the balanced OVC. Still one of the best softball fields in Ohio.
Fairland, Gallia, Chesapeake, South Point each have quality players. Fairland and Gallia will get better in the off season. Chesapeake and South Point have some work to do.
SOC I
There’s ND, Clay, Symmes Valley and then a whole bunch of teams that beat up on each other. This division of the SOC has the biggest discrepancy between the top teams vs the bottom. It would be nice to see softball become a priority at some of these other schools.
SOC II
Wheelersburg is the team to beat. They always have players waiting to fill voids and younger talent coming in. I see West, South Webster, Waverly and Minford giving some teams trouble next year. It’s a good time to be in the SOC II in softball. Games are pretty competitive.
OVC
As long as Moore is in the circle Ironton will be a tough team to handle. There are a couple OVC teams that can give them some trouble. Portsmouth had a win at Ironton this season. Coal Grove and Rock Hill hitters had some success against Ironton as well. I look for Portsmouth, Gallia and Fairland to be top tier teams next season.
SOC II
Wheelersburg: Probably the strongest team in the area with big bats in Eaton and Hughes. Solid youthful pitching in Howard that will carry them for a while. Several younger players that know how to play the game. Tough loss this year with the shortstop Eller.
South Webster: A lot of talent in Webster. They played a great matchup with Wheelersburg earlier this season. Messer is a very good pitcher and has been a great leader for this team. This team has a bright future ahead of them moving forward.
West: McDermott is as good of a pitcher as any of the top pitchers in the surrounding counties. Rollins provided a big bat this year as a freshman and will only get better as she gets older. West has some pieces to be a tough SOC II team.
Minford: Blevins is one of the better all around players in the SOC. She has speed, power and versatility to play a couple different positions. Minford seemed a bit young this year, but played some good softball in a tough conference.
Waverly: They have some very talented players and are going to lose some to graduation. Lucky they have some young talent on their roster and some coming up that will keep them competitive in the SOC.
Oak Hill, Valley, Northwest, Eastern will need to rely on some young talent coming in to improve on their seasons. Based on information I’ve heard Valley has some young players coming that should make an impact over the next few years and can put them right back in the mix. Northwest is losing a solid player in Burchett to graduation and that’s a big gap to fill.
SOC I
Notre Dame: Probably the best overall pitching staff in the area with Sparks and Ford. They lose a couple key contributors after this season to graduation, but having two pitchers that can keep teams honest will continue to keep them at the top of the smaller SOC.
Clay: Lutz is one of the best pitchers in both divisions of the SOC and Bazler has been a solid battery mate for the Clay pitching staff for four years. The graduate some core players and leaves me to wonder what players can fill those voids.
Symmes Valley: They are always competitive and coached well. It must be something in the water out in Willow Wood that always brings competitive softball talent through the system. Look for them to challenge ND for the top spot next season.
New Boston, Green Western, Sciotoville will need to hit the reset button. I say the key to some success at these smaller schools is to develop a young pitcher and catcher, and get a few kids playing travel softball, and your teams will improve.
OVC
Ironton: Moore is one of the more dominate pitchers in the area and will continue to improve as she finishes her high school career next season. She led Ironton to an OVC title as well as having a good year at the plate.
Portsmouth: Possibly the biggest turnaround team in the area. Strong play from Perry at shortstop and at the plate as well as solid years from Ramey and Dickerson. In the circle Phillips has been able to keep hitters honest. This is a young team with some good years ahead of them.
Coal Grove: They had a solid year, but lose two key players in Dillow and Griffith to graduation. They still have some starters coming back next year, but will need to fill some big voids next season.
Rock Hill: similar to Coal Grove they will lose some key players to graduation in Hanshaw and Howard. They have been consistently middle of the pack in the balanced OVC. Still one of the best softball fields in Ohio.
Fairland, Gallia, Chesapeake, South Point each have quality players. Fairland and Gallia will get better in the off season. Chesapeake and South Point have some work to do.
SOC I
There’s ND, Clay, Symmes Valley and then a whole bunch of teams that beat up on each other. This division of the SOC has the biggest discrepancy between the top teams vs the bottom. It would be nice to see softball become a priority at some of these other schools.
SOC II
Wheelersburg is the team to beat. They always have players waiting to fill voids and younger talent coming in. I see West, South Webster, Waverly and Minford giving some teams trouble next year. It’s a good time to be in the SOC II in softball. Games are pretty competitive.
OVC
As long as Moore is in the circle Ironton will be a tough team to handle. There are a couple OVC teams that can give them some trouble. Portsmouth had a win at Ironton this season. Coal Grove and Rock Hill hitters had some success against Ironton as well. I look for Portsmouth, Gallia and Fairland to be top tier teams next season.