The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Oneida’s roster sees big changes this season.
Curro’s squad shifts to Class B
Last spring, the Oneida softball team entered the season with the same roster it ended the previous year with. This year, much has changed. Coach Mike Curro (18th year, 258-110-1) will once again field a strong squad albeit in a new classification, moving from Class A to Class B. Oneida again has a strong group of returners, including pitchers Kylie Chesebro and Kyra Shlotzhauer. Hannah Begay, Brianna Laureti, Lauren Skibitski, Krislyn Adle and Emily Marshall are all back as well for Curro.
Stockbridge Valley enters the new season looking to extend its run of 11 straight Central Counties League titles. Coach Chris Peto (16th year, 241-57) lost All- State catcher Tiffani Jacobs but returns CCL AllStars Olivia Marshall, Alaina Beane and Catherine Meker, along with Kelly Greene, Hayley Smith, Kendra Webb, Madeline Cross and Haylee Eaton. Jillian Jacobs joins the Cougars as they try for another CCL title in a league that features a combination of veteran teams and up-and-comers.
Madison will once again be one of the teams looking to end Stockbridge Valley’s run and are coming off an 8-11 season in which they went 7-5 in league play. Kayla Usborne is one of the Blue Devils’ top returners and is coming off of a season in which she was named a Second-Team CCL AllStar. Courtney Cochran, Elisa Usborne, Taylor Strong and Kierston Abrams return as well and provide coach Elaine Hogan with plenty of versatility, as do newcomers Jourdan Hummer, Jordan Mayne and Heidi Lewis.
Hamilton coach Bill Dow-
sland (20th year, 360-88) has a very young team, with Karley Belanger, Olivia Dow and Kelly Bassett the only three seniors on the team. Lauren LaRuffa, Shelby Curtis, Emily McCann and Beth Belanger the Emerald Knights other returning players while Brynn Bikowsky, Beth Dawkins, Ashley LaRuffa, Madison Rodriguez, Jenna Rogers, Emma Basher and Lauren Rodriguez are the top newcomers. Dowsland’s goal for his young squad is improvement throughout the season and a trip to the Section III Class D playoffs.
Morrisville-Eaton went 4-12 in Penny Koehl’s first year as head coach and returns Cooper Koehl, Mad- dison Newton, Lily Orth, Macenzie Egelston, Hannah Baird, Mackenzie Sternburg and Adreana Thurston. Koehl’s top newcomers this spring are Delaney Koehl, Olivia Eastman, Daylynn Brundage, Taylor Mawarren and she hopes they’ll help the team reach the postseason this spring.
Canastota reached the Section III Class B playoffs in coach Chris Sgarla- ta’s (22-18) second year last spring. Returning from last year’s 13- 6 team are Jade Shimer, Logan Hood, Brooke Weber, Rhilea Chabot and Shelby Kilts and Sgarlata is optimistic that group can step up and replace the six players that graduated last spring and earn another trip to the postseason.
Chittenango had a turnaround season last spring and will have a new coach this year as it tries to continue to improve. Dan Kelly takes the reins of a team that includes returners Morgan Shoemaker, Trisha Whaley, Sydney Bennett, Shayla Muncy and Alexa Rossi. The Bears’ first-year coach hopes their experience last year, along with newcomers Cassidy Kelly, Natalie Cowburn and Sidney Pellman, will lead to a successful season this spring.
Cazenovia returns to a full varsity schedule this spring under third-year coach Lorraine Scheftic. Janie Kempf, Hannah Matteson, Samantha Morgan, Danielle Tedesco, Delaney Yorks and Carli Cunningham return for the Lakers and Leah Gamlen is the top newcomer to Scheftic’s lineup.