Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – Last year’s Del Norte team edged Fortuna for the Big 5 championship.
By Ray Hamill — The Del Norte Warriors have been setting the standard in Big 5 softball for the past few years, and they’ll be hoping to continue that when they begin conference play on Saturday.
The three-rime defending Big 5 champs are 7-3 heading into the new conference campaign, and they open with a home doubleheader against a much-improved Arcata team that is 6-2.
Game one on Saturday is set for 11 a.m.
Del Norte head coach Aaron Healy has had to replace six graduated starters from last year’s team, a group of players that all played key roles on the march to three straight conference titles.
But they have a core group of returning seniors who do have plenty of experience and will be relied on to lead the way for their young teammates.
Overall, it’s a group of players that Healy likes.
“They’re young, but they’re go-getters,” the head coach said. “It’s a good group of kids. I got lucky again. They all get along and they like to have fun.”
Seniors Bliss Blackburn and Bella Arriola are back after playing key roles on last year’s championship squad and both have been leading the way through the first month of the season.
Blackburn starts in center field, while Arriola is the team’s right fielder.
Another returning senior who saw some playing time a year ago is Deja Travis, who is starting at second base and is team’s infield leader, according to the coach.
“She’s more of a lead-by-example type,” the coach said.
Sophomore Addi Whitford is also back this year after quickly establishing herself as a quality varsity player a year ago as a freshman.
Whitford will lead the way in the pitcher’s circle after seeing plenty of time there a year ago while backing up the now-graduated Shay Nolan, who was named Big 5 MVP.
Whitford will also play first base.
Freshman Taylor Horner will also pitch for the Warriors and joins the varsity team in time for league play after getting her feet wet at the JV level during the first month of the season.
Juniors Natasha DeNicholas and Giana Antonetti are two other players who have been impressing early in the season.
Antonetti will play left field and rounds out a talented starting outfield for the team, while DeNicholas is starting behind the plate and has done a good job through the early season.
After edging Fortuna in a two-horse race for last year’s conference championship and completing a hat trick of consecutive titles, the Warriors will be hoping to make it four straight Big 5s this spring.
But they will have their hands full in a conference that appears to be far more competitive from top to bottom.
“I think it’s going to be who performs on their day,” Healy said. “It’s up for grabs.”
