Softball sets eyes on conference title

Experienced team ready to lead the way

It’s not the largest team in the Colby/ Abbotsford softball co-op’s history, but the student-athletes that are returning, feel they’ll have the firepower to compete for the 2021 Cloverbelt crown.

“I anticipate we’re going to have a strong team this year. I’m coming back as a catcher, we have a first baseman coming back, we have a senior pitcher in Emma Peavey,” Abbotsford High senior Catie Clement said. “I think we’re looking pretty good. We’ve got most of the major positions being played by people who have played a lot of softball.”

Clement is one of a handful of players returning to the co-op, along with Alea Graff, Emma Oelrich and Brooklyn Filtzkowski. Peavey did track in 2019, but the athletic senior is coming off a fall and winter sports campaign in which she garnered all-conference honors for volleyball and basketball. However, there’s new players that will be forced to step up, and most likely into new positions. It’s not only players who will be in new positions. The coaching staff has also undergone some changes.

After ten years as head coach, and nearly 20 years with the program, Allen Zettler has called it a career., paving the way for the Laura Kniefl era. Kniefl says Zettler left a good foundation behind.

“Al was in the program for a lot of years, and I give him a lot of credit, because that’s a long time to be coaching the sport. He put a lot of commitment and dedication and effort into the program,” Kniefl said. “I’m very appreciative that he’s given us kind of a building block to start from.”

Kniefl has been with the program for several years, taking over JV coaching duties in 2019, and was as an assistant coach for several years. She said she always paid attention to how Zettler and Rick Golz approached the sport.

“Al did a nice job, and Rick Golz helped out, and I learned a lot from them on the do’s and the don’ts, and what’s good and what’s bad and how to improve from there.”

With just 14 student-athletes out for the sport this spring, there will be no JV program. But this gives Kniefl the ability to focus just on varsity. The mix of upperclassmen and newcomers should allow for flexibility with positions and strategies.

“We have a lot of good talent, and a lot of kids that have played some softball,” Kniefl says about her roster. “We have some returners, so that will be nice from a leadership standpoint.”

Leadership will be key for the co-op’s success. That’s where the juniors and seniors come in, says Clement.

“Basically, I just want to lead people on the field, set a good example, and push girls to keep working hard,” Clement says about her role with the team. “I want the girls to be excited to play softball and to work hard to improve.”

Also crucial to this year’s success will be the 15 contact days allotted to the softball team by the WIAA. Colby High senior Emma Oelrich says the team is using those days to bust off some rust and improve team chemistry.

“With us being together for the first time in over a year we’re focusing on team work and getting back into the swing of things.”

The team’s chances for success extend beyond just the X’s and O’s, Clement says, and as much as she wants to see the team get better at batting and defense, the intangibles are going to be just as important for a deep playoff run.

“I think communication is going to be play a big role. We need to talk to each other out there, encourage each other, say where to put the ball, and just hype each other up. That’s going to be key to keeping our heads in the game.”

Confidence is another attribute the team will look to improve upon. Kniefl is hoping her seniors set the example.

“I think a lot of our problems have come from a lack of confidence in our program. I’m hoping we can get the seniors to show the younger kids that we should have expectations, and that we can win close games.”

Clement knows she and her fellow seniors will have some pressure on their shoulders to keep the program strong. With the 2021 season being her last year with the co-op, Clement and her fellow seniors, Colby High’s Peavey and Brooklyn Filtzkowski, are hoping to leave the program in a better place for next season.

All the seniors are hoping to give Kniefl a strong start to her first year as varsity head coach. They’re all also extremely excited to see their former junior varsity coach calling the shots.

“I’m super excited. Laura has been with the program for a few years now on JV, and she’s very knowledgeable and she’s played a lot of softball,” Clement responds enthusiastically when speaking about her new head coach. “Everyone on the team is excited to have her as our head coach and we want to make sure she has an awesome first year.”

For Kniefl, she’s just grateful her team is getting a chance to compete. She’s tempering expectations this year, and while she wants to pick up some wins, she’s more concerned with her players improving and having fun after being away from the sport for over a year.

“Obviously we want to win games, but the biggest thing this year, especially with having been off for over a year, getting the kids involved, and to get them to play as a team. The only way you learn is by playing, so there’s going to be some learning curves.”

In her first year, Kniefl is hoping to see the team improve on offense and defense. Two years ago, the co-op was often in contention in the majority of its games, but their inability to put pressure on opposing defenses, coupled with at least one rough inning on defense, was arguably the team’s biggest setbacks.

“I’d like to focus on defense this year. You know how the saying goes ‘defense wins games and championships,’” Kniefl says. “We’re really trying to get the defense side of things down and then just have fun with our hitting.”

Clement says a few tweaks on offense and defense could be all that is needed for those wins, and perhaps some hardware at the end of the season.

“I think we need to work on our batting skills and just the knowledge of the game, like knowing when to bunt and knowing when to run or steal. Then also picking up our defense a little bit more, and trying to get those three outs a little bit quicker than past years.”

No matter what happens on the softball diamond this season, all the players and coaching staff were united in their sense of gratitude and happiness in having a season after a year away.

“With everything so unpredictable right now, I’m grateful that we can be out here,” Oelrich says as she gets ready to practice. “I think it’s going to be a little bit hard, but we’re all pretty close. So I think it will be easy working together, and I think we’re looking forward to playing again.”