Unioto baseball, softball looking for results

CHILLICOTHE – Last season wasn’t the kindest of campaigns to the Unioto Shermans.

The Tanks, under head coach Tony Taylor, finished with an overall record of 9-12 and ended their season with a 5-0 loss to Gallia Academy in a Division II sectional semi-final contest.

However, there was a silver lining in the disappointing ultimate outcome: the Shermans’ mark of 8-6 inside the Scioto Valley Conference was good enough to place second out of eight teams.

In 2015, Unioto will be looking to move out of second place, into first, and put together a lengthy postseason run when it’s all said and done.

In order to do so, the Shermans will rely on four different players to be the catalysts of that movement in sophomore Clay Edler, junior Drew Oyer and seniors Nate Parker and Alek Adkins.

Edler, the team’s leadoff hitter will spend his time pitching or catching while Oyer is an infielder, batting in the two hole. Parker is making a return to baseball after not playing the last couple of seasons and will be anchoring the middle of the infield while Adkins settles in the cleanup spot and his center field position.

The Tanks also feature senior Travis Cruse (LF/P), junior Isaac Wheeler (1B) and sophomores Gavin Ogan (3B) and Casey White (RF/P) in their starting lineup.

Rounding out the roster are seniors Payton North (3B/LF) and Hunter Brown (P), juniors J.T. Turner (2B/P) and Scott Freeman (1B), sophomores Keyan Cottrill (IF) and T.J. Hudson (UT) and lone freshman Ryan Sigler (P/LF).

Out of the group, the Tanks are expecting Sigler to contribute the most. While only a freshman, Sigler has just as much talent at the plate as he does the field; which means he’s a very gifted player.

Unioto started out its 2015 season with a 14-2 loss to Hillsboro and an 8-6 loss to Chillicothe. They’ll be in action once again Thursday, at Miami Trace.

Unioto softball looking for team effort to lead to success in 2015

During the 2014 regular season, Unioto’s softball program put together impressive marks of 11-3 within SVC play — second in the conference — and an 18-6 overall record. However, the Tanks’ postseason journey ended prematurely in a Division II sectional title game against Waverly, 7-2.

In order to prevent that same outcome from happening again, the Shermans are taking a team approach this season.

“I expect us to be a lot better at the end of the year than we were at the beginning of the year,” Unioto coach Brad Jadwin said. “I expect the girls to know the game a lot better and become better people. That’s part of the process. It’s not all about softball because there are lessons you can learn from playing this game. We’re not a team that’s going to sit back and wait for the big three run home run. We’re a team that’s going to come together as a team and find ways to win.”

Leading the team effort will be seniors Emily Ward (1B), Brantly Warren (2B) and 2013 SVC Player of the Year, Gina Wright (CF).

“Gina is an ex-Player of the Year in the SVC and she’s a tough kid. She’s a four year starter and I expect her to lead,” Jadwin said. “Ward, hitting in the three hole, has been a starter for four years now and to me, she’s the best first baseman in southern Ohio. And then Brantly Warren, who’s also been with me for four years, keeps the infield intact. I expect a lot out of those three girls.”

Joining the three seniors will be junior starting pitcher Brooke Blevins, who will either help the team float or be the reason they sink.

“Brooke will keep us in most games,” Jadwin said. “She’s got great control and she’s going to be around the plate, meaning that our defense will have to play well. Her ball moves a lot and the other team will put the ball in play a lot, which means that our defense will have to be ready. She’s not going to walk a lot of people. Brooke is an asset to our ball club and as long as she’s going well, we’ll go well.”

Junior Jordyn Pierce will be hitting in the cleanup spot and playing shortstop while fellow junior Mckenna Jones will be slotted in the five hole, playing left field.

From that point on, the Shermans’ roster consists of one sophomore and six freshmen.

The team’s lone sophomore is Ashton Junk (3B) and the six freshmen are Lauren Junk (OF), Summer Sigman (C), Payge Arledge (IF), Carly Adkins (OF) and Hannah Stotridge (OF).

Jadwin, who is in his 12th year in the Shermans’ dugout, expects a lot out of the mix of experience and youth.

“You’ve got to prove something on this team this year,” Jadwin said. “All the way through our lineup, we can hit. We can do well at the bottom of the lineup just as well as we do at the top. I want to keep the opposing pitcher in check all the way through. Do I have a girl under the radar? I don’t know. All I know is that I want the opposing team to think, what are we going to do with Unioto, because they all can hit.”

Unioto started its season off with a 5-2 win over Hillsboro, followed by an 8-3 win against Chillicothe. Standing at 2-0, they’ll once again be in action, Thursday, at Miami Trace.

Derrick Webb is a Gazette sportswriter and can be reached at dwebb@chillicothegazette.com. Follow him on Twitter at @dw1509.