SOFTBALL POWER RANKINGS — Who is the best team in the H-DNL?

By barstoolfanatics on April 13, 2024 • ( Leave a comment )

Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – The McKinleyville Panthers have a big upcoming series against Del Norte.

By Ray Hamill — At the start of the season, most local observers thought Del Norte would be the team to beat in the H-DNL this season and there’s no real reason to change that perspective.

But it’s been far from perfect.

The Warriors opened the season with six straight wins, but then went through a rough patch with five losses in their following six games, including a defeat at Fortuna in their Big 5 opener.

But they appear to have weathered the storm and are fully healthy again as they get set for a busy few weeks in the Big 5.

Two wins over Fortuna last weekend was a nice response to their conference-opening loss and a fully healthy Del Norte team should only continue to grow over the next month.

The Fortuna girls, meanwhile, look like a clear No. 2 team right now and best positioned to challenge the Warriors for a conference crown, with McKinleyville right in the mix as well.

But the Huskies took two of three games in a recent series against McKinleyville, with both of their wins coming by just one run.

They have also dominated Little 4 opposition this spring, winning all five games against the smaller schools by a combined 75-10.

The Huskies are also the only H-DNL team to have beaten Del Norte.

The McKinleyville Panthers are also in the mix for a Big 5 title.

Few local coaches do a better job than Mack’s Shanna McCracken, who seems to always have her teams in contention and improving as the season goes on.

A key three-game series against Del Norte next week will be telling.

If the Panthers can take at least two of those three games they will be considered legitimate conference contenders, but it will be tough.

The St. Bernard’s girls, meanwhile, have a nice victory over Arcata under their belts and have been comfortably taking care of business in the Little 4.

Their one conference loss came in a doubleheader split at Hoopa on Friday, but they have won five of their six L4 games and they lead the standings halfway through the campaign.

The Arcata Tigers also have impressed this season.

After winning just one game in all of 2023, the Tigers are tied for the Big 5 lead after three games and poised to make some noise.

Taking two of three games against Eureka will give this young roster plenty of confidence moving forward as they look to qualify for the Charles Lakin tournament.

And don’t forget about the Hoopa Warriors.

The Hoopa girls don’t make our power rankings this week, but they are beginning to build momentum after winning four of their six conference games in the last week, including a split with the Crusaders on Friday.