The Adna Pirates are no strangers to success in softball.
For years, there have been not one, but two columns on the gym wall highlighting their success at state tournaments, including six state championships and four other runner-up finishes.
And that’s just since 2008.
They've been to four straight state championship games, and in the past two seasons, they have won their first back-to-back state titles since 1994 and 1995.
This year’s group will look to do what the 1996 group couldn’t, as the Pirates are gearing up to try to three-peat for the first time in school history.
“It’s gonna take more work than it did the last two years,” Adna coach Bruce Pocklington said. “It’s just a matter of getting better, getting stronger, having more discipline, and teaching them how to play the game the right way. If we do that, we’ll be in good shape.”
It’ll be nearly entirely the same group as the one that won it all last season, as Margarite Humphrey is the only senior who graduated last spring.
Like last year, though, some “young pups” will have to step up along the way, particularly in the circle.
Ava Simms dealt with a knee injury that kept her out of postseason games last season, and she will be out for the first chunk of this spring as well.
Avery LaFontaine stepped in and won the district title game in 2024, and she’ll be the Pirates’ main pitcher throughout the early part of the season.
“The younger pups after her will also have to throw some innings,” Pocklington said.
The lineup will be as potent as ever, as Danika Hallom, Kendall Humphrey, Alyssa Carroll, and Gaby Guard are all back to headline the offense. Brytin Dollarhyde and Lena McCloskey will also look to build on stellar performances in the state title game.
“I’m looking forward to it,” Pocklington said. “We’ve been really working hard. We’re gonna be ready when it’s time … My goal, just like every year, is get better every day, and become a team. If we do that, we’ll be in the mix.”
Every other team, of course, will be looking to take down the champs, including Pe Ell-Willapa Valley.
The Titans took the Pirates to the brink in a state quarterfinal last season in another postseason classic between the two clubs, and they went on to win their final three games to finish third in state.
They only lost two seniors from last spring, Kylee Lyons and Lauren Emery, though they will have to fill the void Emery leaves in the circle.
Eight other Titans that earned all-league honors are back, including Lauren Matlock, Jillian Hodel, and Karli Phelps, who were each named to the P2BL first-team.
Back in the Central, the Onalaska Loggers will have to rely on a new arm after Lisa Liddell graduated early and joined the softball team at Grand Canyon University this spring.
The Loggers will rely on a solid core of upperclassmen that includes Randi Haight and Kate Zandell, a pair of 2024 all-leaguers, in hopes of getting back to state after falling short in last year’s district tournament.
They’ll also welcome in Delaney Marshall, who earned first-team all-league honors with Mossyrock last year.
Toledo went on a run in the state tournament last season, cruising to the state semifinals as the No. 10 seed, but the Riverhawks lost two straight and didn’t return home with a trophy.
They had four seniors last year, but everyone else was either a freshman or an eighth-grader, and they are all back with the experience of a deep postseason run.
That includes Peyton Holter, who struck out 149 batters and won 18 games across 136.2 innings.
Rainier went one-and-done in the district tournament last season, and the Mountaineers will unfortunately be without one of the best hitters in the area.
Brooklynn Swenson hit .614 last season, but she’s expected to miss the spring after rupturing her Achilles in the final moments of Rainier’s win in the basketball district title game.
Ryleigh Cruse returns as the team’s ace, and Keira Anderson returns after batting .564 and driving in 33 runs.
Napavine also went one-and-out at districts, and they’ll bring everyone back except for Grace Gall.
Clara Fay, Grace Pancake, Hayden Kaut, and Hannah Fay all hit .500 or better last spring, and Hannah Fay is looking to build on an up-and-down sophomore in the circle.
Mossyrock is back in the C2BL after a pit stop in the 1Bs, and the Vikings will look to make it back to the 2B State Tournament for the first time since 2011.
Erin Cournyer is back to lead the pitching, while Adyson Barrows, Taylor Schwartz, and Chesney Schultz headline the lineup. They will have to fill the void left by Marshall, who is now at Onalaska.
Both Morton-White Pass and Winlock will be looking to return to districts after missing out last season, and the Timberwolves got the early upper hand on the Cardinals in a non-league clash.
The T-Wolves rallied late to top the Cardinals 11-10 in the two team’s season opener last Friday.
