The First Article of the Season

Mike asked me to post this article. It was printed in today's paper.

Lady Wolves 9-2
Ranked 7th in the state

Lady Wolves See Only Present
By Kevin Hageland, Staff Writer

Last season went very well, and very unexpectedly, for Plano West. After losing the core of its team due to graduation, the squad of mainly freshman and sophomores captured a share of the District 9-5A championship, with Plano East, and advanced to the Region II Semifinals before losing to Bryan. But the past is the past and the Lady Wolves went about emphasizing that point in dramatic fashion. West held a ceremony where the team wrote its record on a softball and buried it in the dirt behind the Lady Wolves dugout on the first base line. “The girls loved last season,” said Mike Ledsome, West head coach. “But I think they know that now it is time to move to the next level.” And while that may be the case, the ceremony was still emotional for many of the players. “It was sad,” said Dayna Purl, West sophomore. “Because last year was so much fun.” But with a new year, and last season’s success, comes higher expectations. After the mass exodus of the 2006 team, not a lot was expected from the Lady Wolves. But after making the Round of 16, West began the season ranked No. 8 in the state.“There is no question the expectations of us are far different this season,” Ledsome said. “We will have a big target on our back this season; it’s not like last year when we flew under the radar.”That was evident early this season as West moved up to No. 6 in the Texas Girls Coaches Assocation poll after going 4-0 and winning the Mansfield ISD Tournament. That ranking, West is now No. 7, was the highest in the history of the program.“It’s nice to be honored by the other coaches with that kind of ranking,” Ledsome said. “But at the same time a lot of the early rankings are based on what you did last season, so you can’t carry that with you.”And that message was obvious in West’s season opener as the Lady Wolves lost to Flower Mound, ranked No. 9 in the state, 3-0. That is the game that brought out the need for the ball burying ceremony.“I didn’t really see the effort I wanted in that first game,” Ledsome said. “I think we were a little cocky and maybe hadn’t moved past last season.”Things turned around after that though as West reeled off seven straight victories, which included a first place finish in Mansfield. The Lady Wolves tried to replicate that finish over the weekend at the Allen Tournament, but finished second in their pool after losing to Smithson Valley, No. 2 in the state, 4-0.But even with those two losses, West, which begins play in the Frisco ISD Tournament today, sports an 8-2 record and top 10 ranking heading into Monday’s District 9-5A opener.And then there is the fact that the Lady Wolves are returning all of their starters from last season.“We have everyone back, but everyone has seen our hitters too so we will have to adjust,” Ledsome said. “But we are going to have a full lineup; one through nine, there are no holes.”Perhaps most important among those hitters is senior catcher Paige Burke, who along with outfielders Alyssa Nagy and Mackenzie Andrews, is one of the three seniors on a junior-filled team. Burke, who signed with Central Arkansas in the fall, is entering her fourth varsity season.“I am expecting us to put out the same effort as last year,” Burke said. “We can’t get cocky because we know everyone wants to beat us. And we want to get to state.”And Burke’s work ethic has translated to the field where she has started out the 2008 season strong.“Paige already has three home runs and has been throwing runners out left and right; she is off to a fantastic start,” Ledsome said. “Paige is a leader and a captain; she has been here all four years and knows this is it for her.”Burke isn’t alone in the lineup though as the junior trio of Christina Roosmalen, who is verbally committed to Southern Mississippi, Magean De La Torre and Kayla Millette, are also expected to pick up where their sophomore seasons left off.And even though West has plenty of continuity, there will be a big change in the circle as junior Kylie Walker will pitch along with Purl. Walker, who pitched on the Plano Senior JV squad as a freshman, pitched all the games for West’s undefeated JV squad last season, striking out 202 batters in the process.“These girls have been fantastic and really made my transition easy,” Walker said. “I would trust them with my life.”And while Walker expressed a strong desire to beat Plano this season, she thinks having two pitchers, a system Ledsome has never used, will help the Lady Wolves.“It’s a little disappointing because I am not used to being on the bench, but I have full confidence in Dayna,” she said. “It will be fantastic because if a team starts hitting me or her, we can just bring the other one in.”Purl expressed the same slight disappointment, before addressing the positives of the two-pitcher system.“It’s a little sad because I love pitching and I love being out there,” she said. “But I just want to win and I could see this benefiting us a lot because teams won’t see either of us too much and get used to our styles.”Burke called Walker a “hard worker,” but had more to say about Purl as the two were teammates in 2007.“Dayna is always focused; whether it is hot, cold or raining, she never complains,” Burke said. “Nothing stops Dayna from doing her best.”And with 11 returning players, as well as three new ones, Burke is expecting nothing but the best from West.“We are going to kick some butt,” she said. “So other teams need to watch out.”Walker and Purl said hard work could lead to a first-ever state tournament berth, as did Ledsome.“We’ve gotta go out there and prove ourselves all over again,” he said. “If we do that, if we stay focused and if we step up, we should be able to do it.“After last year, we feel like if we make it back to that round, we will move on.”