The Bee’s softball Top 20: New wave of stars dot Sacramento diamonds as new season begins
Softball season is here. Teams are dodging rain drops as a wet February of workouts for Sacramento-area programs now includes a damp start to March and an effort to get games in.
The rain will go away, but who will emerge as the next crop of senior leaders for an area long known for softball excellence? The departure of the most talented senior class of stars in recent history makes for an interesting 2023 campaign.
The rosters of Pac-12 Conference programs are dotted with talent from Sacramento’s class of 2022. Even last year’s junior sensation and Sacramento Bee Player of the Year, Elk Grove pitcher Aissa Silva, graduated halfway through her senior year and is already competing for the University of Arizona. Two of her teammates at the Pac-12 program are 2022 stars Dakota Kennedy of Sheldon and Tayler Biehl of Vista del Lago.
Roseville, Del Oro and Folsom had a total of 10 Division I scholarship players graduate, and how those teams respond will go a long way in deciding who wins league races.
The Bee’s preseason Top 20 team rankings look a little different than last year’s final rankings, but two teams that tied for fourth place in the Sierra Foothill League — Granite Bay and Whitney — might be the teams to beat.
Top-ranked Granite Bay has the pitching and No. 2 Whitney has the hitting. Coach Brian Seva’s young Granite Bay squad was moving up the rankings last year before losing six of eight games in the SFL. Seva scheduled a tough preseason in hopes of making a run at the SFL title. Avery Seva may be the class of the league in the circle as the ace pitcher and Drew McKown at shortstop solidifies the Granite Bay defense.
Whitney may have one of the best batting lineups in any league with sisters Mya and Alyssa Flindt hoping to bring coach Mike Mello’s Wildcats back to the D-I section finals, which they won in 2019. Bolstering Whitney’s batting order are some promising freshmen and a sophomore transfer. Rocklin coach Mallory Asaro returns the best shortstop around in junior Syd Barker, who is already committed to Oklahoma. Defending Sac-Joaquin Section Division II champion Del Oro is a near total rebuild in the SFL with the loss of Caroline Grimes (UC Davis), Jenna Birch (Oregon State), Haylee Engelbrecht and home run leader Kendal Manley (Sierra College). But the storied Golden Eagles have Daniella Morillas in the circle.
Folsom will miss Bee MVP finalist Emma Fallon (UC Riverside), but new coach Sheena Jackson has returning outfielder Grace Carpenter. Oak Ridge may challenge in the SFL as well.
Capital Christian of the Capital Athletic League added some transfers and an incoming freshman pitcher who has already caused a bit of a buzz on the travel ball circuit. Alaya Nu’ua brings the heat from the circle for Capital Christian and her older sister, Alanna Nu’ua, and Savana Newman are good hitters who transferred from Pleasant Grove.
Capital Christian will have to dethrone defending CAL and section D-III champion Vista del Lago, led by Charlize Cai and Olivia Manchester, who can pitch and hit.
In the Delta League, defending league and section D-I champion Sheldon returns pitcher Jaylee Ojo, catcher Jaylee Marshall and shortstop Sakora Harvell, who can all hit for coach Mary Jo Truesdale, winner of nine section crowns. Elk Grove returns center fielder Taylor Fitzgerald and shortstop Brooke Hanson for coach Amanda Buck.
Franklin is also a threat in the Delta with Cal-commit shortstop Nailyn Marshall and teammates Kealani Nitta and Emma Nelson. Nitta hit in 24 consecutive games while Nelson hit safely in all but three games for the Wildcats last season. Pleasant Grove is led by pitcher Maddie Lawson. Four-year starters and stars Hope and Grace Jenkins are playing for the University of Connecticut as freshmen, leaving a void in the Delta.
Longtime Sacramento area coach Art Guerra at Inderkum saw his program bolstered by UNLV commit Rylei Trujillo, a transfer from Center. She and Samantha Stoll make a formidable duo in the circle, and both can hit. Can Inderkum win the Capital Valley Conference over Woodcreek, which looks to make a push this year? Roseville is starting over in the CVC after losing a host of seniors to graduation and the retirement one of the longest tenured coaches in Northern California in Art Banks.
Ponderosa, which returns pitcher Ana Niles, Chase Mueller and Whitney Montoya, will again compete for the Foothill Valley League with Oakmont and Lincoln.
CIF Northern California D-III champion Sutter and rival Wheatland are big area additions from the Northern Section. The teams figure to battle it out in the Pioneer Valley League, along with Marysville and Michigan-bound center fielder Jenissa Conway. Sutter’s Alex Carino and Megan Heggstrom are the team’s top hitters. Wheatland is anchored by Utah State-commit catcher Zereniti Sousa.
Small-school powerhouse East Nicolaus has proven it can beat D-I powers over the years. The Spartans lost Remmington Hewitt, now starting at third base for the University of Oregon, but Spartans coach Neil Stinson has one of the best pitching duos in Meike Lauppe (Arizona State) and Danni Farris (Pittsburgh). Infielder Jerzie Brown can hit. The Spartans expect to dominate the Northern Section and compete with most any team in the Sacramento area.
Reach Pete DuFour at PeteBeeSports@gmail.com
Next week: Breaking down baseball.
THE BEE’S TOP 20
Softball
Records from 2022
1. Granite Bay (15-10)
2. Whitney (11-14)
3. Vista del Lago (24-5)
4. Inderkum (17-10)
5. Pleasant Grove (16-12)
6. Elk Grove (21-7)
7. Sheldon (28-6)
8. East Nicolaus (29-3)
9. Rocklin (18-12)
10. Capital Christian (12-8)
11. Ponderosa (22-4)
12. Folsom (20-6)
13. Vanden (20-1)
14. Sutter (31-1)
15. Woodcreek (16-13)
16. Roseville (21-8)
17. Franklin (12-16)
18. Wheatland (27-5)
19. St. Francis (26-5)
20. Del Oro (27-5)
Bubble: Cordova (17-9); Marysville (20-5); Dixon (24-2); Oak Ridge (8-16); Bella Vista (13-12).
This story was originally published March 7, 2023 at 5:00 AM.