By Drew Terhall

Dailyadvocate.com

ANSONIA — The Ansonia softball team will under new leadership for the first in over a decade. After previous head coach Floyd Jenkins retired, David Fisherback is taking over the program.

Fisherback said in his first year coaching, they are working on some of the defensive fundamentals of the game.

“Coach Floyd Jenkins was a great coach here at Ansonia. I got five seniors that we’re really looking to lean towards their senior experience. Trying to focus more on fundamentals,” Fisherback said.

The seniors returning are Maddie Buckingham, Kelsey Muhlenkamp, Bailey and Brenna Schmit and Abby Kramer. Kramer was named to the All-WOAC First Team last season while Buckingham and Bailey Schmit were named to the All-WOAC Second Team last season. Brenna Schmit was a special mention.

Kramer will take the bump again this season. She pitched in 22 games and racked up 152 strikeouts while posting a 2.33 ERA. Her 152 strikeouts was second best in the WOAC. Kramer also led the team in hitting with a .405 batting average and 24 RBI.

Buckingham, Muhlenkamp and Bailey Schmit all hit above a .310 average while Brenna Schmit had 18 RBI. With the senior group alone, Ansonia is returning a lot of production.

The Lady Tigers also return starters in sophomores Ava Thatcher and Kylie Caldwell and junior Avalyn Locke.

Fisherback said the team has been playing well in scrimmages so far, they just need to execute a bit better.

“We just have to execute, be a little more aggressive and utilize our speed. We have team speed and we have to utilize it. But we have to execute,” Fisherback said.

Like in their scrimmage against Parkway, a State Final Four team last season, Fisherback said they had a few small mistakes that they need to clean up.

Ansonia was 16-9 last season with a 9-2 WOAC record. They were one game away late in the season from claiming a share of the WOAC title. A loss to Arcanum in May gave the Lady Trojans the outright title.

The Lady Tigers are looking like they could compete for a league title again. Fisherback said while he’s not familiar with all of the teams in the WOAC, he does have an idea about the local WOAC teams and expects to compete.

He doesn’t expect it to be an easy task, but believes his players can prove once again they are one of the better teams in the conference.

The seniors are expected to have a big influence on the team. Fisherback said he is excited to be the coach of this program and hopes to have his seniors be true leaders on and off the field this year.

“I’m excited about the opportunity to partake here with the Lady Tigers and to change the attitude a little. They’ve always had good attitudes up here. Softball has always been confident,” Fisherback said. “But, trying to get our senior leadership to share their leadership and be leaders. Not only in softball, but also in life.”

Ansonia will be on the road to start the season as they head to Eaton for a double header on March 23. The first game is set to start at 11 a.m. with the next game starting shortly after. They will then head to Fort Recovery on March 25 for a 5 p.m. first pitch.

Contact Daily Advocate sports editor Drew Terhall at [email protected]