'Good mix' of athletes for GCHS softball

Mar. 31—GREENSBURG — With a sectional title drought extending to well over a decade, Greensburg softball coach Wade Hersley hopes this is the year the Pirates break through.

"We've just got to get over that hump and get that sectional win," Hersley said. "I think this group can do it."

The Pirates' two main goals are to win conference and sectional. Their last Eastern Indiana Athletic Conference championship came in 2015, while their last sectional title came in 2007.

Hersley took over as head coach in 2017. After going .500 in his first year, the Pirates went 17-9 and 17-10. They had five seniors on the 2020 roster, but they didn't get to compete because of Covid.

"We would've had a really good season," Hersley said.

The Pirates' roster this season breaks down like this:

—Four seniors: Taylor Cooney, Emma Deweese, Liz Pavy, Melina Wilkison

—Three juniors: Kayla Kelso, Carmen Nobbe, Allison Ripperger

—Two sophomores: Lydia Balser, Emilee Ernstes

—Four freshmen: Carlee Adams, Mackenzie Austin, Alexis Condon, Hermione Robinson

"I think it's a pretty good mix," Hersley said.

The Pirates have four returning players from 2019, their four seniors. Three of them have signed to play college sports.

After tremendous freshman and sophomore seasons, center fielder Melina Wilkison is headed to Ohio State. She's on pace to break multiple school records, and entered this season with a .531 career batting average, which is first all-time.

"She's good," Hersley said. "You only get one of those in a lifetime. She's good. She's really good."

Pavy will play softball at Danville Area Community College, a junior college in Illinois. She leads off for the Pirates and is a utility player. She played third during Tuesday's season-opener.

Shortstop Taylor Cooney will play basketball at the next level at Grace College.

Juniors Nobbe and Ripperger started Tuesday's game in the outfield corners, Balser started at second and Deweese started at first.

While the Pirates committed one error, Hersley expects defense will be a strength this season.

"We've got some athletes, so I think our defense is going to be pretty stout," he said. "We're still moving people around. We've got Mel in center field, so she pretty much covers three-quarters of the field."

It's a good freshman class, Hersley said. And based on what Robinson and Adams did in their varsity debuts against Jac-Cen-Del, it's easy to see why he said that.

Robinson threw a no-hitter, while Adams, who is a catcher, went 3-for-3 at the plate.

"It's a pretty good freshman class," Hersley said. "I look for them to be in the lineup later in the season, because they're pretty good."

Robinson pitches for her travel team, the Shock Waves out of Noblesville. They play a pretty high level of competition, Hersley said, traveling out of state for most of their games.

The main difference between travel ball and school ball is age. Robinson will now be throwing to seniors, who are three years older, although it didn't seem to make a difference in her debut.

Balser is the Pirates' No. 2 pitcher. She would've been the backup last year also, behind a senior.

Adams provides Hersley with a third pitching option. She hasn't pitched in three years, he said, but looked good during a scrimmage game last week.

"I wouldn't be afraid to throw her," Hersley said.

One aspect the Pirates will work at improving is base running. In particular, the players need to know how much of a lead to take when the ball is in the air.

"And when they do catch it, work on trying to get off so maybe they make a throw and make a mistake," Hersley said. "Just being aggressive on the base paths is what we're going to work on."

Greensburg's sectional features the same opponents as the EIAC, minus East Central. The Trojans compete in 4A, while the other seven conference schools compete in 3A.

East Central is the defending conference champion, going 14-0 in 2019. The Trojans are perennial contenders for the title, and this year will be no different, Hersley said, as they have a senior-laden squad.

South Dearborn, which finished third behind Connersville two years ago, is another team Hersley expects will be very good this season. The Knights return six of their nine starters, who were either freshmen or sophomores in 2019.

Greensburg opened the season this week with a pair of nonconference games, and will jump into EIAC action with a doubleheader Saturday at Connersville. After that, they'll host South Dearborn on Wednesday.

As the players continue to see more live pitching, Hersley expects the Pirates' bats will heat up.

"I think our defense will be pretty good and our offense will come around to it," he said.

Andy Scheidler may be contacted at 812-663-3111 ext. 217401 or andy.scheidler@greensburgdailynews.com.