Eagles poised for a big season




JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers SWINGIN' FOR THE FENCES- Oak Park High's Jenny Liepman crushes a ball during softball practice earlier this week. OPHS was ranked sixth in the CIF-SS Division III preseason coaches' poll.

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers SWINGIN’ FOR THE FENCES- Oak Park High’s Jenny Liepman crushes a ball during softball practice earlier this week. OPHS was ranked sixth in the CIF-SS Division III preseason coaches’ poll.


On paper, the Oak Park High softball team is very similar to the Los Angeles Dodger teams of the 1960s. The Eagles are quick on the bases, their defense is solid and they have the best pitcher in town.

As the Eagles prepare for their season opener against Pacifica High Saturday, head coach Roger Newell is hoping the above combination can get Oak Park a TriValley League title, an honor that went to undefeated Oaks Christian last year.

A year ago, Oak Park finished second in league with a 10-2 record before falling in the quarterfinals of the CIF-Southern Section playoffs to Beckman High.

Newell is confident his squad can get back to the postseason, and he’s especially excited about his new weapon- speed.

“In year’s past we weren’t that fast,” Newell said. “We had some good hitters in the thirdthroughsixth spots, but nobody for them to drive in. This year our whole team is very fast, and we’re looking to get some people on base at the top of the order.”

Newell was so committed to fielding a quicker team that he told one of his better hitters, Amanda Cox, that she would bat from the left side of the plate rather than her natural right side for the remainder of her career at OPHS.

“Her speed had everything to do with that switch,” Newell said. “A fast runner from the right side of the plate becomes extremely fast when they’re batting from the left side.

“I felt bad that the season ended last year, because I felt she was just finally starting to become a solid left-handed hitter by the season’s finale.”

Although Newell is not sure of his starting lineup yet, he does believe that Cox and possibly sophomore Brett Hall will occupy the first two spots in the order.

The Eagles lost two of their best hitters from last season in Stephanie Gilbert, who batted .438 in 17 games, and Michelle Tabone, who hit .342 and was named to the All-Tri Valley League first team.

Looking to step up in Tabone and Gilbert’s absence are seniors Aly Skene, Jennifer Colquhoun, Jenny Liepman and Sarah Rosenberg, as well as junior Rose Zeolla.

Colquhoun was a first-team all-league selection last season, while Zeolla and Skene were second-team members. Kathryn Klamecki, Jenn Stevens and Nicole Werdesheim should make an impact, too.

With the pitching of AllTriValley League first-team member Julia Rice, however, the Eagles may not need many runs to win.

Scoring a run off Rice was like winning the California lottery- it was nearly impossible. She won 18 games while giving up only 14 earned runs in 151.2 innings (.646 ERA.). In addition, Rice struck out 295 batters.

“She’s a very humorous and nice lady, but when she enters that pitching circle something changes,” Newell said.

“She becomes very focused. She’s always nice to her teammates, and if one of them happens to make an error behind her, she just gets stronger. You do not want to be the next batter after somebody reaches base off her.”

The OPHS infield should be solid this year with five returnees.

Zeolla should handle the catching duties; Colquhoun will play shortstop; Klamecki is penciled in at second base, and Rosenberg will play third.

Liepman is now the first baseman, her natural position, after playing right field for the past three years.

Rice, a junior who’s already committed to Purdue, said she’s very confident in the Oak Park defense.

“It helps a lot knowing that there’s an infield behind me that is very experienced,” Rice said. “I have complete trust in them with every ground ball.”

In fact, according to many Eagle players, team chemistry has improved.

“All of our seniors work as one this year, which is nice,” Rosenberg said. “It helps that we’ve played together for so long, and I believe the new girls see this and they start to feel as if they’ve known us forever as well.”

While the team has experience playing together, Rice said playoff experience will help them more than anything else this year.

“We got an idea of what we’re going up against,” Rice said. “It kind of showed us what other teams were working on that we weren’t. This season, we know what to expect.”

Although the Eagles’ only two league losses came to their rival, Oaks Christian, Liepman insists the postseason is more important to this squad.

“To us, Oaks Christian is just another game,” Liepman said. “They’re a really good team, but winning CIF is more important to us.”

Oak Park will begin its quest to take the TVL title from Oaks Christian on March 18 when the Eagles host Nordhoff High.

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