New coach inherits team loaded with talent and depth

New Highland High softball coach Greg Exton could not help but break into a wide smile while discussing taking over the reins of a team that lost only one player to graduation after coming within one win of a berth in Class 3A’s Final Four.

“There’s plenty of talent here, there’s no question about that,” Exton said. “I wasn’t for sure it was a job tha tI wanted. I’ve been coaching select ball for 10 or 12 years and I wasn’t sure I wanted to take on any more and my wife wasn’t sure she wanted me to take on any more. I knew my daughter (HHS JV coach Madison (Exton) was already here with the program. So that definitely was a bonus for me to come and be a part of the team.”

Three current Highland players have played for Greg Exton on the 18U Black Widows select team. The trio consists of junior pitchers Aubrey Hacke and Jenna Gnaedinger as well as junior second baseman Peyton Holzinger.

“Those three are very good ball players and that’s kind of how the job came of notice to me,” Exton said. “THe girls’ parents were telling me that you need to go and take a look at that job because they’re looking to hire a new person. THen went in to talk to the AD (retired Steve Lanxon) and here I am.”

With all of the success the team experienced last year and with the wealth of returning talent, it is only natural that there are lofty expectations for this season.

“The goals are to win the conference and advance as far as we can in the playoffs,” Exton said. “We’d like to take that one extra step than what they did last year and make it to state. I guarantee with this team here that is what they are looking forward to this year — is making it to state.”

The Lady Bulldogs will likely be tested right off the start when they host O’Fallon at 4:15 p.m. Wednesday.

Highland’s lone senior, Lauren Wright, who will be a three-year starter in center field and is a St. Louis College of Pharmacy recruit, said the coaching transition this year has been pretty smooth.

“Coach Exton is knowledgeable about the game has been coaching for some time now,” Wright said. “It’s always a little different each year for me since this is now my fourth coach to play for, but we are all adapting to his style of play. Our squad does possess unlimited potential and I hope we are able to put it all together for a very strong season this year. I’m sure we all feel a little pressure to take this team farther this year, but we will take it day by day, inning by inning.

“I think it’s going to be a great year to be a Bulldog.”

PLENTY OF PITCHING

Highland is loaded with talented depth at every position and that is no more evident than on the bump as the Lady Bulldogs feature four proven pitchers, two from each arm.

The right-handers are Gnaedinger and sophomore Kirsten Plocher. Plocher (8-3) had a breakout campaign as a freshman, leading the team in wins, strikeouts (73) while posting a 1.91 ERA and just 18 walks in 69  2/3 innings.

“KP did a great job last year and she is continuing to improve,” Exton said. “I’ve seen her throw some select games and she is going to be really tough.:”

Gnaedinger, a junior, had solid numbers at 6-2 with a 2.65 ERA.

From the left side, Hacke, a junior, leads the way as she already has gained two years of top-notch varsity experience. As a freshman, she helped the team win a regional after going 7-1 with a 1.38 ERA before going 7-5 with a 1.68 ERA, 65 strikeouts compared to just 16 bases on balls in a team-leading 79  1/3 innings of service.

Sophomore southpaw Addison Rinderer was huge for the JV last season before being promoted to the varsity in the second half of the season and contributing to the big post-season run. She went 3-0 with a 1.17 ERA to go with 16 strikeouts and only six walks in 24 frames.

Exton really likes his four hurlers.

“With the staff that we’ve got, most of the time we should feel like we are going to be in the game,” he said. “If we can put three or four runs on the board, we should feel pretty good about our chances for success.”

Plocher and Hacke figure to be the top aces in the rotation again this year, but Rinderer and Gnaedinger should still get their share of the workload.

“I got to see more JV games than varsity last year because I watched my daughter, who was more involved with the JV last year. So I got to see a lot Addy (Rinderer) and she did a great job pitching last year for the JV. And you can see a definite improvement in her game from last year to this year.”

Exton said he will probably not go with a set rotation.

“We will definitely be throwing our best in conference games,” he said. “We want all of our pitchers to get some innings, but obviously some of them are going to get more innings than others,” he said. That’s just the way it is and it’s just playing time for position players. The best players are going to get the most time. This isn’t rec ball where everybody shows up and everybody gets to play two or three innings. It’s not like that anymore. Most of the girls play select ball and they know what it’s all about.

“There is a possibility that we not be able to get enough innings for all of those girls at the varsity level and we may occasionally send one or two of the girls down to pitch a JV game just to get some game time and stay sharp.”

TEAM HAS DEPTH

Other than 2015 graduate Mallory Rutz (Wabash Valley College), Highland returns everybody from last year and has battles at just about every position.

“The competition is stiffer for most of the positions than it was last year. There definitely is going to be two or three deep at a lot of the positions,” Exton said. “We have so much talent and depth that we are going to have a lot of really good players that are not going to be in the lineup at a given time.”

The junior varsity squad, which will be coached by Jason Basso and Susie Kronk this season, should have a strong team and should overwhelm a lot of their opponents this season.

INFIELD

Junior Hannah Miener returns to skillfully handle first base.

“You’ve got to give Hannah Miener the nod at first base,” Exton said. “She led the team in hitting last year and she’s solid defensively and is a big target.”

Last year, Miener batted .394 with a .452 on-base percentage to go along with nine doubles, two triples, one home run, 29 RBIs and 25 runs scored.

Junior Peyton Holzinger comes back to reclaim her job at second base after hitting .316 with nine doubles, four triples, 27 RBIs and 25 runs a year ago.

Three players have been taking repetitions at shortstop in the hopes of filling the void left by Rutz.

Junior Sierra Huelsmann has been an adept right fielder, but she has shown interest in playing short. She has proven to be able to cover ground well and has a cannon of an arm. Last spring, Huelsmann batted .294 with two doubles, one homer, 13 RBIs and 14 runs.

Sophomore Kourtney Zobrist was the JV shortstop last year before finishing the season in the outfield for the varsity.

“She is a real versatile kid who can play in the infield or in the outfield, so she is definitely going to see considerable playing time somewhere,” Exton said. “And she swings the bat well too.”

The third option at shortstop is freshman Lily Garbett, the younger sister of junior catcher Jillian Garbett. Lily also has taken some reps at third base.

“Like Zobrist, she is a versatile kid who has a lot of ability to play numerous positions,” Exton said.

Reily Kassay was a mainstay last year at third base. In addition to possessing the arm and the glove to be strong at the hot corner, Kassay hit .318 with four doubles, one homer, 19 RBIs and 21 runs.

Joining Jillian Garbett in the battle to be the backstop are junior Megan Frey and sophomore Gabi Berolatti.

OUTFIELD

Wright will be a three-year starter in center field, where she utilizes her stellar speed to flag fly balls down in the gaps. She also possesses a rare combination as a player who can hit for average, power and has really good speed on the base paths. Last season, Wright hit .374 with a .431 on-base percentage to go with eight doubles, five triples, three home runs, 23 RBIs and 25 runs.

Joining Wright as strong candidates in the outfield are Huelsmann, Hacke and Rinderer.

“The outfield could be up for grabs, but I would think Lauren and Sierra will more than likely be two of them,” Exton said.

Kassay has shown interest in switching from third base to the outfield but Coach Exton is not sure he wants to forego her talents at the hot corner.

“She is probably the fastest kid on the team, so it’s nice to have her out there in the outfield running balls down,” Exton said. “And she’s got a nice arm. But I’m not sure if she would be more valuable out there or at third base because she is a darn good third baseman.”

This story was originally published March 15, 2016 at 7:32 AM with the headline "New coach inherits team loaded with talent and depth."