Great expectations for Barbs softball

DeKALB – MacKenzie Johnson is reminded how talented her DeKalb softball team is every day at practice.

Sometimes it comes when she watches freshman pitcher Katie Kowalski, who entered high school with the expectation of becoming the Barbs' ace. Other times it's when she is around fellow senior Kelli Gerace, who along with Johnson makes one of the state's best duos.

But mostly, those reminders come when her team is in the batting cages.

"Watching people hit, it's like, 'Holy cow, we have people this tall who can hit the ball over the fence,' " Johnson said, pointing barely five feet above the ground. "I see it every day at practice."

DeKalb coach Jeff Davis knows he's working with a lineup loaded with talent. The Barbs return Johnson and Gerace, all-state honorable mentions last season. They're one year wiser, one year better, than a 22-13 team that ended its season short of a regional championship.

Davis expects his team to have no problem consistently scoring runs. DeKalb has several players who can do it the easy way.

"I really honestly believe that this team is probably seven deep with girls who can yank it out of the ballpark," Davis said. "That just says, if you make a mistake over the middle of the plate, we're going to make you pay for it. We can hit with anybody. We're a very offensive-minded team, and we've got to get defensive minded to win a lot of good, close ball games against good competition."

There were too many errors last season, a problem Davis knows can't be repeated if his team is to have the success it should this spring. DeKalb's defensive issues were most obvious in three losses to crosstown rival Sycamore, including a 10-3 season-ending defeat in the regional semifinals.

Kowalski should help her team's defense by herself. The freshman throws six different pitches, and Davis said she has good command of her fastball on the corners.

Everyone, from Davis to players, seems excited to see what Kowalski can do. When the freshman doesn't have her best stuff, Gerace said, it will be on her older, more-experienced teammates to back her up.

"She has confidence, and we all have confidence in her," Gerace said. "We've got to eliminate the errors. Play like we know how to. Field like we know how to. Do the little things."

DeKalb will be without one of its best players from last season, Tia Lexa, who was named to the Daily Chronicle's all-area first team. Lexa graduated high school a semester early.

But with all the firepower coming back, Davis said he still IS confident his team will be better this spring. He believes the biggest improvement has come from his best two players.

Of all the things Johnson and Gerace give DeKalb, Davis said their leadership is most important.

"When I get around these girls and get to see them every day, I see how much more they've matured and grown up from being a junior to being a senior," Davis said. "Our senior leadership on this team is phenomenal. We're way more mature.

"I don't think we're going to panic in panic situations. I think this year we're going to be the team putting pressure on teams instead of the team being pressured. I think we're just a lot more experienced, a lot more seasoned, and we're going to win those close games this year."

SOFTBALL TEAM PREVIEW CAPSULES

DeKALB
Coach: Jeff Davis
Last season: 22-13, lost to Sycamore in the Class 3A Sycamore Regional semifinals
Key returnees: Kelli Gerace, MacKenzie Johnson, Alysha Guy
Top newcomers: Katie Kowalski, Jessica Townsend
Notable losses: Tia Lexa
Outlook: With a talented lineup, Jeff Davis knows his team will score plenty of runs. He's hoping freshman pitcher Kowalski will keep DeKalb's opponents from doing the same. Johnson and Gerace return for a team that won 22 games last season but fell short of a regional championship. If the Barbs finish with anything less this year, Davis said, it will be difficult to call it a successful spring.
Davis' take: "With the pitching we have this year, absolutely, this very well could be our big season. I feel like we're going to do very, very well."

GENOA-KINGSTON
Coach: Mike Lauer
Last season: 24-9, lost to Stillman Valley in the Class 2A Byron Regional final
Key returnees: Kelsie Campbell, Ashley Miller, Erica Anderson
Top newcomers: Paige Keegan (Fr., C/3B), Natalie Klein (So., 3B/SS)
Notable losses: Laura Volkening (CF), Karli Beauchamp (P)
Outlook: Lauer thought his team would generate some runs this season. He was right. The Cogs opened their season this week with two wins, scoring 41 runs in the process. Lauer said he's expecting good pitching this season, too. As long as G-K scores four or five runs in a game, Lauer said, its chances of winning are high. Judging by the look of things, that won't be much of a problem.
Lauer's take: "We've been hitting the ball very hard. Probably the best part about that is our players, one through nine, are all hitting the ball hard. Usually the last five (in the lineup) are struggling.
"I'm surprised with that many runs, not so much that we're hitting that well. We're just loaded with kids coming back who have played a lot of softball over the years."

INDIAN CREEK
Coach: Paul Waitkoss
Key returnees: Lauren Anderson (Sr., SS/P), Anna Stiker (Sr.), Sara Faiver (So.), Jackie Presetergaard (Sr.), Alanah Weiseler (So.) and Amanda Woodbury
Top newcomers: Kayla Kauffman (Fr.) and Samantha Bergstrand (Fr.)
Notable losses: Jennifer Westbrook, Caitlin Dabbs and Sara Chapman
Last season: 16-12, lost to Amboy in the Class 1A Indian Creek Regional semifinals
Outlook: Waitkoss knew pitching was his team's biggest weakness this season. He didn't know how big it was until his team opened with a 26-1 loss to Genoa-Kingston this week. Fortunately for Waitkoss, Indian Creek returns nine players from last year's team, including all-Little Ten Conference team selections Anderson and Stiker. While two seniors will provide experience, Waitkoss said the Timberwolves' underclassmen need to have good seasons.
Waitkoss' take: "Five underclassmen are going to be asked to step up big this year if we are going to be successful, and I have full confidence in this group's ability to do so."

KANELAND
Coach: Brian Willis
Last season: 20-11, lost to Sycamore in the Class 3A Sycamore Regional finals
Key returnees: Andrea Potts (Sr., IB/C), Rilee Vest (Sr., C) and Allyson O'Herron (So., SS)
Notable losses: Delani Vest, Brittany Davis, Jordan Hester
Outlook: On his preseason team evaluation form, Willis only wrote one word next to the "big question" section: pitching. With last season's Daily Chronicle player of the year, pitcher Vest, unable to play this spring, Willis needs someone to become his team's ace. He doesn't know who will fill that role.
Willis' take: "I guess if I had one word for expectations it would be competitive. I want to play hard and be competitive. We've lost some key people this year, and we're going to have to find some pitching if we want to have a successful season at all."

SYCAMORE
Coach: Jill Carpenter
Last season: 21-16, lost to Geneseo in the Class 3A DeKalb Sectional final
Key returnees: Abby Foulk (So., P), Sam Navarro (Sr., C/2B), Becca Schroeder (SO., C/2B), Meranda Brashears (Jr., SS), Brittany Huber (So., OF), Kelcee Miller (Sr., OF), Haley Salazar and Ashley Colen
Top newcomers: Keri Treml (Jr., P), Taylor Zak (Fr., P), Taylor Jones (Fr.), Tristyn Criswell (Fr.), Lyndsey Coddington (Fr.) and Jasmyne Taylor (Fr.)
Notable losses: Anna Buzzard, Nekoda Garbes, Katie Jones, Rachel Lesorgen, Emily Schramer and Nicole Schroeder
Outlook: Sycamore won the regional title last season with a senior-laden lineup leading the way. If the Spartans repeat that success, it will come with a team full of underclassmen. Carpenter said five freshmen and three sophomores will receive significant playing time this spring. They're talented, for sure. They also are inexperienced, especially with their bats. Carpenter said she doesn't know what this season has in store, but she knows her young players will need to grow up quickly.
Carpenter's take: "Everybody always says, 'How's you're team looking this year?' I say, 'youthful.' When eight of your players have been in high school for less than two years, there's going to be inexperience."
– Compiled by Ryan Wood, rwood@daily-chronicle.com