Batter Up! Time to Throw Out the First Pitch of 2016

And so it starts, another high school softball season, my 39^th (I think: #joysofaging) high school team, 21 here at WGHS. I do have a Facebook group (Tiger-Statesmen Softball Players) which will also carry this blog. Our first game is Tuesday against the Cougars of Affton at Affton Athletic on Gravois (game time is 4:15).

We are carrying a large squad this year, 16 girls. That will present a challenge in terms of finding playing time. While we are not playing for world peace or an end to hunger, this is interscholastic, not recreational, softball. Less experienced and/or skilled players may have trouble getting many opportunities. Patience and practice will need to be their watchwords and we’ll work to find chances for them to experience the game and achieve success, either at bat, on the bases, or in the field.

I mentioned it to the girls the other day, but you can help your daughter by reminding her that every day, every practice, every drill, every warm-up, every catch and throw counts, and is a chance to get better and to demonstrate her skills and growth as a player. With so much competition for playing time (and advance warning, there is a large and very talented crop of eighth graders waiting for their chance to join the program), encourage your player to work hard at improving all aspects of her game.

This blog will be updated (theoretically) after each game, complete with a summary, comments, and box score, and often pictures (courtesy of Amy Love) of home games. If a parent wants to take pictures at away games, I have a camera that should allow for that opportunity – or you can use your own. (Note: softball is tough to shoot; in addition to softball teams, I also advised 13 yearbooks and took tens of thousands of pictures over those years.) Also, if we have a parent or two who are scorekeeping nerds, there is a program (Game Changer) that works on an iPhone or iPad (data plan needed) that would allow other parents to follow the game in real time for those who can’t make it to whatever field we’re playing at. Let me know if either of these “opportunities” appeals to you (bobberndt530@gmail.com).

Occasionally I will post and/or tweet (follow either @CoachBerndt or @berndtsbuddies (I don’t want to throw any assistant coach under the bus but I didn’t pick that handle nor will I actually send those tweets) the projected starting lineup for that day’s game, subject to last minute changes due to absence, or injury, of course. Speaking of that, if your daughter will NOT be available for whatever reason, as much advance notice as you can provide will be appreciated. In theory I have set the blog to be tweeted automatically. However, at the top right of the blog is a way for you to subscribe to automatic notifications (again, in theory). 

I’m looking forward to the season, mostly because I like the way this team is coming together, rooting for and supporting each other. I’m lucky to be supported by two strong assistant coaches, Chris Fechtel and Kate Wylie, as well as the varsity team of Head Coach Bryan Gibson, Sam Pitlyk, Dave Knapp and Doug Dickman. That’s a lot of instruction available, although practices will be limited as the games get going. Speaking of which, here’s our schedule (lots of early home cooking) through August:

Let the Games Begin!

And so we’re off, starting another season tomorrow, traveling to Parkway Central to take on the Colts. Game time is 4:15 and will represent a homecoming of sorts for Coach Cerutti, returning to the school where he coached for so many years. I know the feelings he will have, because I had similar ones when Hancock played Webster the first two years after Hancock moved to the fall season. For a year and a half I had been the varsity coach at both schools. It was a little weird coaching against girls whom I had previously coached.

The girls have worked hard and we coaches are very pleased with the progress we’ve seen over the past couple weeks. It’s time now to see how well those practices can translate to game speed and game situations. Given what we’ve seen, we’re confident that we’ll field a high-energy team that demonstrates good sportsmanship, one that the opposition will respect. We’re a little hamstrung our first couple games with eligibility issues; we’ll only have 10 eligible players for our first game, 11 for our second game, the evening (6 p.m.) contest against Nerinx on Monday at KAA. But we’ll be at full strength when we take on the Cougars of Affton next Thursday at home. The always tough Seckman will come to visit on Friday. Here’s our starting lineup for tomorrow afternoon:

Please sign up to receive notifications of blog updates. I will post box scores (and pictures, when available – we need road game photographers, if you’re interested) the evening of a game, or perhaps the next morning. If you enter your e-mail address above, you will receive an e-mail when I update the site. If anyone has an iPad with a data plan, and you like to keep a scorebook, GameChanger allows parents who can’t be at games to follow along. We promise not to tell your bosses that you may not be entirely focused on your job. Otherwise, you’ll just have to wait for a report from your daughter and the box score.

One of the joys of coaching at Webster has been the opportunity to get to know not just the outstanding young women who make up our teams but the parents who support them, as well. Having spent 37 years at Hancock, where I began coaching in 1986, I don’t take this for granted. I am confident I will meet every every parent of every girl (if I haven’t already) at some point or another this season. At Hancock, I had girls I coached for four years whose parent(s) I never even saw once.

We hope that you are looking forward to enjoying this season as much as Coach Cerutti, Coach Knapp, Coach Fechtel (and Coach Poe, in absentia) and I are. We have a great group of girls.

Play Ball!

P.S. I am still working on how to change the cover photo to represent 2015. I have created a new photo but have yet to be able to import it to replace the old one. #firstworldproblems

Under the Lights

Our delayed season opener is now tomorrow evening. Assuming we don't get pushed back an hour due to heat (not an unlikely possibility -- flexibility is apparently going to need to be one of watchwords for the season), both teams will see or throw their first pitch around 6 p.m. This side by side doubleheader against Nerinx has become a tradition, one that I think benefits both programs. Please feel free to share any game pictures you take and I’ll work to get them in the game summary and box score.

We're still awaiting clearance for one of the varsity players, and that will determine how many players the JV has available, and who will start in the circle, for this game. In any case, there will be at least three, and perhaps four, projected starters either ineligible or with the varsity. I don't expect to have Brittany Hartung with us for a while, at a minimum until Bree Schatz's ankle has healed and she can go full speed for a whole game or two.

JV teams are usually a house of cards, and it's a challenge to move one without impacting the whole structure. We are lucky this year to have players who can compete in several positions, but those are often the same ones Coach Gibson needs to fill his holes. 

Last year we defeated Nerinx 14-3 in 5 innings, but trying to predict results based on the previous season, especially on the JV level, is both foolish and impossible. I know because I've tried and failed, both taking wins for granted that didn't materialize and giving away wins because either subs played extremely well or a rival JV was experiencing a down year.

That being said, we play away on Friday against Seckman and considered last year's home loss a moral victory because, for the first time in years, we got to bat in the 7th inning! 

I'm going to post the "Snack Schedule" here in the hopes that at least some parents will have notification before game day. We will have water at every game, but girls might want to also bring their own jugs. The team will provide snack options at our two tournaments.

I'm looking forward to getting to know each of you better as the season wears on and hoping that you'll be forgiving if I start to wear on you.

2014 Snack Schedule

August 25	H Love
August 29	Maggie
September 2	Grace
September 3	Becca
September 8	Ro
September 10	Greer
September 12	Claudia
September 15	Nieman
September 17	OW
September 22	Nicole
September 24	Caroline
September 25	Alina
September 30	Emma
October 1	Karlee
October 3	AC

Staggering to the Starting Gate

What with injuries, concussions and family travel we'll be starting this season with thin rosters. As I sit here Thursday morning we have only 21 eligible players for both rosters. Because varsity takes priority, JV will probably play Friday with only 10 players -- no courtesy runners, no DP, and one emergency sub if there’s an injury. Obviously, not the way we drew it up. 

There will, undoubtedly, be more changes and players moving between squads as the year progresses. We should have two more players meeting the 14-practice minimum on Monday, be back at full (JV) strength by next Friday. The ankle injury to senior Bree Schatz, an entrenched starter, makes the varsity thin, however, which means we’ll probably be loaning at least one of our starters to Coach Gibson for the foreseeable future.

You never want to see a game postponed, but not playing tomorrow due to heat might not be the worst thing to happen. With so few players and a stifling heat index, it will be essential for the girls to pre-hydrate (lots of water today and tomorrow) not only before the game but during the contest, as well. I’ll have three “cooling towels,” but if that’s something in your kit, feel free to pack it for the next couple weeks.

When I have a surer handle on our lineup for tomorrow, I’ll invite you to follow us on GameChanger™. You don’t have to wait for the invite, of course, but I think I have e-mail addresses for everyone and you can look for that this evening. You can, at least in theory, follow us on Twitter (@CoachBerndt) and via-e-mail by signing up in the area above the headline but below the header.

Looking forward to an “interesting” season, as in the Irish Curse, “May you live in interesting times.” I have been assured, however, that neither world peace nor local strife hangs in the balance. I plan to have fun, and hope you and your daughters will join in.