For the 2008 edition of Dutchgirl softball, youth will be prevalent as only six girls on the rosters are juniors or seniors.

Kayla Strubberg (left) and Mandy Raaf (above) will look to help a young Owensville softball team make progress from last season which saw it end in the district semifinals at the hands of Fulton.

“We are young and we’ll have a lot of learning and growing to do throughout the season,” Dutchgirl senior Mandy Raaf said. “We also get along well as a team and we’re pretty energetic. That will help us even though we’re a young team.”

Karen Willimann’s Dutchgirls will have a lot of varsity-experienced shoes to fill as eight seniors who saw significant playing time last year are gone due to graduation. They include Holley Schindler, Rhiannon Edler, Tianna Figgemeier, Hillary Haase, Ashley Crews, Liz Rivera, Lana Altemeyer and Courtney Baumbach.

“We’ll be young this year and last years’ seniors will be sorely missed this season,” OHS softball coach Karen Willimann said. “We have three players returning that saw varsity experience in Mandy Raaf, Kayla Strubberg and Alyssa Angell. They will be looked to for leadership on a team that is made up mostly of freshmen and sophomores.”

Strubberg is optimistic about the upcoming softball campaign.

“I hope that we have a good season even though we have a young team,” Strubberg said. “I think we have the athletes and the talent in place to have a good season as long as we do our best every game.”

The Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) district placers put the Dutchgirls back into a mostly Four Rivers Conference district with Sullivan, St. Clair, Union, St. James and St. Francis Borgia.

“It’s kind of nice to get back into the district with Sullivan as that will mean a closer drive for us and more familiarity with our district opponents,” Willimann said.

Sharing pitching duties in place of the graduated Liz Rivera will likely be the sophomore duo of Jessica Brown and Lacey Crews. Both saw limited varsity time last season and will share the bulk of it during 2008.

Competing for the chance to catch either Brown of Crews will be sophomores Ashley Wisdom and Amara Frame. They will fill the tall shoes left by Haase’s graduation.

Raaf will likely hold down the hot corner at third base, while the other positions on the field are wide open for who might fill those in once the opening day of the season rolls around Monday.

Owensville softball will take Lions Field for the first time in 2008 on Monday, Aug. 25 when Steelville’s Cardinals come to town for a 4:30 p.m., first pitch.

After a second home game on Tuesday, Aug. 26 against Fatima’s Comets, OHS will open FRC softball against Sullivan’s Eagles on the road on Tuesday, Sept. 2, with a 4:30 p.m., first pitch in Sullivan.

Overall, Dutchgirl softball should be both fun and a learning experience for all 25 players on the roster.