If experience counts for anything, then the Richmond Senior softball team has a good foundation heading into the 2010 season.

Coach Wendy Wallace’s Lady Raiders have nine returning letterwinners back from last season’s North Carolina Class 4A playoff squad. That includes a good core group of six seniors, with two juniors and a sophomore also returning. Just two seniors graduated last season.

The 2010 season will be a bit of a wild card, as the Lady Raiders are in a new conference: The Southeastern Conference. Until this year, Richmond was in the Mid-Southeastern Conference, which included Richmond, Hoke, Scotland, Pinecrest and several Fayetteville-area schools.

Gone are the Fayetteville schools. In their place are Lumberton and Purnell Swett.

Scotland is a perennial favorite in the conference, as well as a good rival for

Richmond. Wallace expects the Scots to be strong again this season.

Richmond’s core of six seniors will be expected to produce both in the field and at the plate in 2010. The Lady Raiders’ chief pitcher will be Maggie McKenzie, who was 15-5 with an 0.68 ERA, and 9.3 strikeouts per game a year ago.

McKenzie has signed a letter of intent to play softball at UNC-Wilmington next season.

McKenzie helped herself out greatly with the bat last season, leading the Lady Raiders with a .455 average.

Behind the plate will be Rebecca Kinsey, who hit .413. Brittani Hodges can play either first base or shortstop. Ashlie Floyd is an outfielder/second baseman, while outfielder Morgan Denham hit .340 in 2009. Candace Frye, another outfielder, batted .304 to round out the Lady Raiders’ returning nucleus of seniors.

Juniors Taylor Satterfield, a third baseman, and Allison Wood, a first baseman/outfielder, return as well. Sophomore pitcher/outfielder Casey Sneed will be the Lady Raiders’ backup hurler.

Sneed and McKenzie will complement each other well, Wallace said. “Maggie is the power pitcher, and Casey is more of a finesse pitcher who has to hit her spots. We’ll be able to throw two different looks at teams.”

McKenzie, Kinsey, Hodges and Denham earned All-MSEC honors last season.

Newcomers will include junior outfielder Jerrilynne Porter; sophomore designated hitter Faith Richardson; junior first baseman Alex Gardner and junior second baseman Ashley Leviner.

Wallace got a good look at her team last week in a home scrimmage against Lee County. The Lady Raiders shut out Lee, 10-0 in eight innings. McKenzie and Sneed split the pitching duties, combining for just two hits. The defense behind the pair was solid, with no errors.

With pitching and defense looking good, Wallace said the key to success for the Lady Raiders will be hitting. “We’ve got to produce at the plate, especially our middle hitters,” Wallace said.

In the scrimmage against Lee County, 10 of the Lady Raiders’ 13 varsity players recorded at least one hit. Wallace found that to be an encouraging early sign for a team that had only been practicing for a week.

“As long as we come out ready to play, when we get good pitching, the defense will make the plays,” Wallace said. “We need to hit consistently. Last year, we started off hot, then tailed off. I’d like to see us be more consistent at the plate.”

The Lady Raiders open the 2010 season Friday night on the road at Jack Britt.

First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.



Contact sports editor David Vantress at 997-3111, ext. 14, or via email at dvantress@yourdailyjournal.com.