The season didn’t end the way the Sisters High School varsity softball team wanted it to, but coach Tom Mauldin is quick to remind his players that with a playoff format, the season only ends victoriously for one team.

    “Monday’s playoff loss to Pleasant Hill wasn’t what we wanted, then again, only one team – the eventual state champion – will end up with a victory,” said Mauldin.

    The first-year Outlaw coach and veteran of many fastpitch softball seasons said he would have a team meeting on Wednesday “filled with positives” noting that after Monday’s game he wanted the “sting” to set in before moving forward.

    “It’s a learning process – winning, losing, caring, wanting, effort,” said the coach. “Had we just shined on the loss, they wouldn’t have learned how much they never want that sting again. With that said, we can now move on. I’m real proud of this and their efforts this season – anyone who didn’t see that must have be from another planet.”

    What the Lady Outlaws accomplished was:
    • Most wins in school history;
    • Third place finish in the Sky-Em League (team had never finished higher than next to last);
    • And had an extended season, making the playoffs for the first time in school history.

    “But there was a lot more than just that,” said coach Mauldin. “We had some tremendous individual efforts and every player learned a lot about the game, competing and what extra effort will award.”

Individually:

    • Sophomore infielder Jenna Sneva set a school record for batting average at .419. The old mark was .390. She also tied the school record for hits in a season with 31, led the team in stolen bases with 13, runs scored 19. And in league, she batted .463 and had a very impressive on-base percentage of .600;

    • Junior pitcher Sam Stoneback set school records for wins (7), strikeouts in a season (143) and Earned Run Average at 2.66. In league, she struck out 98 in 81 innings and had the second best ERA in the Sky-Em at 1.64;

    • Courtney Overstreet batted .378 for the season and tied senior Becky Bremer for the team lead in runs batted in with 13. She had 28 base hits – third most in school history;

    • Bremer, senior catcher, batted .338 on the season, had 26 hits, scored 15 runs and batted in 13 and more importantly, threw out 19 runners who tried to steal on her behind the plate;

    So while the sting is fresh from losing to a team we beat twice earlier (9-6 and 9-1), the girls have a lot to be proud of, their coach quickly pointed out. The preseason goal was to compete and that they did.

    “Only a year ago, the team was 10-runned often. This year, only once and it was our first game. Let us play Mountain View again and it won't be 10-0 ... I guarantee the girls won't let that happen,” said the optimistic coach.

    The Lady Outlaws lost three games by one run and three by two. And in five of those games, they led in the fifth or after the fifth. That's competing. And in a must-win game against Cottage Grove, the girls stepped up big to win, 17-1. The season could have ended then, but they wanted a post season for the first time in school history and got it.

    "There were a lot of little things along the way and some huge things the team learned – learning to care about team performance, learning what it takes to win; and wanting to compete."

    “We had some moments where the girls seem to have a hard time listening or focusing. But they kept working on it and good things happened. That is what separates doers from non-doers...it's pretty simple,” said Mauldin.

    What the girls have to remember, too, is that they had probably the most challenging preseason schedule of any 4A team in Oregon and they played a half-dozen ranked teams along the way. Six of the teams we played are still playing in the post season. That says a lot about the growth of the Outlaw program. Like the coach says, the girls have taken a big step, indeed.

    "We also can be proud of the fact that a lot of people told us the 2006 team had a lot more talent and we needed this player or that player if we were going to compete in 2007. Yep, we were short on team speed, short on experience and short on knowledge of the game. But, we competed. I couldn't be prouder of this group of girls."

    As for next year, any coach would be optimistic. Only two starting seniors were Bremer and Overstreet – that's a lot to lose, but eight returning players. Plus, Camille Peterson will return for her senior season after spending her junior year as a foreign exchange student. There are several 8th graders who as freshmen next year could see a lot of varsity time and there is the potential for transfers (“I've been hearing rumors since we won three-in-a-row at midseason,” said Mauldin).

    “Plus, a few girls who didn't play this year, asked if they could come out for the team next year. Creates competition I tell them and that better prepares them for life,“ said the coach.

    The biggest thing the Lady Outlaws need from the returning players is off-season work with focus on fundamentals. Mauldin noted, “We made 108 errors in 24 games this season – that's twice as many as we should make. But with the work ethic these girls developed, I'm sure they're already working on them.”

Outlaw Softball - All Good, All Positive, All Team