The baseball and softball fields at Camp Verde High School will see a daily mixture of youth and experience.
While the Cowboys baseball team returns only one starter from a team that lost to Chino Valley High School in the first round of the Division III tournament, the softball team has a new coach but three senior ace pitchers that hope to improve on a second-round state tournament finish.
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Head Coach Will Davis knows he’ll have his work cut out for him to have as successful season as the Cowboys did when they made it to the 2013 Division III state tournament as a No. 23 seed.
The Cowboys have four to five freshmen to work into starting positions, including the pitching rotation, as senior Andy Woodward, expected to be the No. 1 starter for the Cowboys, chose not to return to the program for his final season.
“So we’re still trying to figure out who’s going to play where,” Davis said. “Success is going to depend on how you define the word ‘success.’
“For us, it’s dependent on how well each of the players individually improve over the season, more than wins or losses.”
Davis looks to senior Tyler Dickey to shore up the void in the rotation left by Woodward.
“He’s the only big arm we have,” he said. “He had an injury last year, though, so he hasn’t played since he was a sophomore.”
Junior shortstop Ezra Church is the only returning starter for the Cowboys defensively. But Davis is optimistic about the freshman talent coming in.
For the full story, please see the Wednesday, Feb. 26, issue of the Camp Verde Journal.
