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OCEAN CITY – After tying the school record for wins with 20 last season, the Ocean City High School girls softball team won’t be sneaking up on anybody this spring.
On the plus side they have two strong pitchers – Jessica Mooney and Brooke Douglas – returning for their sophomore campaigns and coach Carrie Merritt is excited about what is ahead.
The Raider girls’ bats were strong in their season opener at home against Atlantic County Institute of Technology Friday afternoon, beating the visitors 8-1 as they spread scoring over five innings.
Carly Hennis, Anna McCabe, Mooney and Taylor Vaugh had two hits each and Douglas, Carlee Hiddeman and Annabelle Shumski had one hit apiece. Shumski and Hennis had doubles and McCabe and Shumski had two RBI each.
“We opened Friday after our rain fest,” Merritt said about the downpours that hit the region last week, causing cancellations and postponements across various sports. “We won our (Cape-Atlantic League) opener against ACIT. I’m really excited about this core group of kids.”
She was happy with the strong batting performance because they lost to graduation a strong leadoff hitter in Macky Segich.
“I think that first opening game was comforting to see. We have told these kids they’re really going to have to step up throughout the lineup and we’re going to need to find ways to get on base and they really answered that call,” she said.
Vaugh is the team’s leadoff hitter this season. “She has to take over for Macky Segich. Mack we could count on to get on base, to steal bases. Taylor had Macky last year so we had a one-two punch from them,” Merritt said.
“That’s the spot where we really are trying to find a new groove. Who is going to step up in those early leadoff spots?”
Not only are teams aware of the Raiders’ overall potential, they also are recognizing the batting prowess of Mooney and Douglas.
“In a game over the weekend Brooke got intentionally walked twice. That puts someone on base, but other kids are going to have to bring them in,” Merritt said. “There are expectations on all of them. Even in our losses (Saturday) we scored eight runs.
“I like to see hits scattered throughout the lineup,” she added. “That’s my hope for the season.”
Good pitching was part of Ocean City’s successful 2023 season and is going to help the Raiders in 2024.
Merritt plans to give Mooney and Douglas a lot of shared time. “They come with a different set of tools which can be useful because everyone knows Brooke and Jessica. I hope they each bring even more confidence now that they’ve had a strong freshman campaign. I think they have the tools to take us pretty far along.”
Vaugh, a junior, is the “spark plug” for the team and is back at second base.
“She brings all the energy. She just loves the game and she really encourages her teammates. When you think Ocean City softball and energy, Taylor is our girl for that.”
Fellow juniors Shumski, Hiddeman and Sydney Catto, who had limited playing time last year, are expected to be playing full-time this season. Merritt said a lot of responsibility comes with that. Shumski will be at first.
Kiley McCorristin, a sophomore, will handle most of the duties at catcher, sharing a little time with junior Lyla Ginzberg.
There will be a rotation at shortstop depending on whether Douglas is pitching.
The starter is senior Anna McCabe, who will be playing softball at Washington College in Maryland next year.
“She is actually cool to see. You can see she has settled in as a senior and I’m looking forward to the leadership role she will play,” Merritt said.
When Douglas isn’t pitching, she goes to shortstop and McCabe slides over to third base. When Douglas is pitching, Hiddeman is at third, but otherwise will be in the outfield.
That brings up an important point Merritt has drilled into her players.
“My battle cry to all of them this year is you might be playing a position you’ve never played before, but we have full faith you’ll handle that. We expect some mistakes and we’ll rally from those mistakes,” the coach said.
“It’s cool to see how the kids are accepting that and excited to move forward as a team. We have a bunch of kids who all play the same position so we have to be creative in how we handle that.”
In the outfield, senior Lindsay Tate, in her first year on varsity, is in left. Catto is taking over the duties in center and right will be another shared spot with Hiddeman or Hennis, depending on who is pitching.
And there are other talented kids in the mix who may rotate into the lineup.
After the 20-5 season that tied the record for most wins with a team from the 1980s, Merritt is working from a different perspective now.
“I’m kind of focusing on ourselves and not on the competition we play,” she said. “Last year we were able to sneak through some games and some tournaments being relatively unknown or the expectations weren’t as high for us. I feel like right now our kids are feeling the pressure of a winning season and what others expect of them.”
She said as a coach she is feeling the pressure too.
“Myself and assistant Josh Handshaw are trying to reel that in, and focus on pitch by pitch, inning by inning, game by game,” she said. “We think we can have another successful campaign, but we have to stay in the moment and stay present. I think that can be as much of a life lesson for them as feeling the pressure and how we handle it. That’s how we’re looking at it, but I have high expectations.”
The Raiders were scheduled at Wildwood Catholic Tuesday, hosting Holy Spirit at 4 p.m. today and Our Lady of Mercy Academy at 4 p.m. Thursday, and Toms River North at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Holy Spirit.
– STORY and PHOTOS by DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
