The Johnsonville and South Florence softball teams had seasons to remember in 2009.
The only thing either team likely wants to forget is how their seasons ended.
The Flashes and Bruins were both swept in their respective state championship series appearances. Buford defeated Johnsonville for the Class A title, while Gaffney defeated South for the Class 4A crown.
“It was great for the team and the school,” first-year Johnsonville coach Randy Willis said of last season. “Hopefully, our goals for this year are the same, but to take it one step further.”
Willis takes over a Johnsonville squad that was 26-9 last season under Ryan Poston, who left to take a job in the upstate. The Flashes have 10 returning players, including staff ace Rachel Gaster.
Gaster went 15-5 with a 0.68 earned run average and 125 strikeouts in 123 innings last year. She’s joined by returning No. 2 starter Ashlyn Cribb.
“We have no question marks at pitching,” Willis said. “We feel very confident in both Rachel and Ashlyn. We know what to expect from them.”
The biggest question marks for the Flashes are in the field and at the plate. All-state first baseman selection and North-South representative Taylor Prosser graduated along with all-region shortstop Morgan Owens.
“We’ve had to switch some people around to fill those holes,” Willis said. “Taylor was one of the best hitters in the state, so replacing her won’t be easy. We’ll have an inexperienced outfield, and we’re still working on getting the right people in the right places at this point.”
Johnsonville won’t have the luxury of an easy schedule, either. As always, lower state Class A softball is loaded, with Region 8-A foe Lake View and East Clarendon, the team Johnsonville beat for lower state, returning most of their core players.
South, which made its fifth Class 4A championship series appearance in the last six years, also has have some big shoes to fill.
The Bruins lost all-state selections Jazz Holiday, Abby Yarborough and team MVP Kelsey Pruitt.
“We have six starters back, but we lost three big hitters,” South coach Bobby Jones said. “We lost not only three great players but three great leaders, so filling those voids are going to be tough.”
It will take time for the young squad to gain experience, Jones said, but the Bruins have the benefit of returning one of the top pitchers in the state.
Kaiti Harper went 22-2 last season for the Bruins, with her only two losses coming in the state finals against Gaffney.
“She’s going to give us a chance to win every game,” Jones said. “If we can play good defense behind her and score some runs, we have a chance to be a competitive team again.”
In Class 2A, Quinn Alford takes over a Cheraw squad that returns all of its key players from a squad that competed for the lower state championship last year.
In Class 3A, Darlington looks for another postseason run after falling short in ’09. The Falcons were coming off their first state title in school history in ’08.
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