The Oakville baseball team earned a spot in the district tournament last spring, but they bowed out instantly with a first-round loss.
Many of the same faces are back looking for more, though, including Daniel Rodas, Gio Rodas, and Koner Burnett, the all-league trio from 2024.
New coach DeVonte Ford will look to get Oakville over the district hump this year and back to the state tournament for the first time since 2015.
The Acorns got off to as good of a start as any team could hope in their season opener against Mary M. Knight, where they needed just three innings to plate 38 runs.
Oakville softball returns to action
The Oakville softball team is back after not fielding a team last season, and new coach Marisa Lucero is excited about what she’s seen from the Acorns so far this year.
The Acorns haven’t played a game yet, but Lucero has seen plenty from the dozen kids that have come out this spring.
“It definitely excites me for the next few years,” Lucero said. “They’ve already made huge growth in just the two weeks we’ve had practices.”
It’s a blank slate for Lucero as the team’s coach, not just as the new head for a team that didn’t play a game last season, but also with how she can bring the team along. Just two of the team’s 12 players, senior Vivi Cruz and junior Lillyannah Zilsdorf, have previous softball experience.
The rest of the team is made up of sophomores, freshman, and eighth graders who are new to the sport.
“I’m really excited about it,” Lucero said. “I think it’ll be a good season. I think we’ll have our ups and downs but I think it’ll be growth for the next few seasons.”
The Acorns will get their first game experience on Wednesday against the Hoquiam junior varsity team, and they'll host Naselle in their league opener on Friday.
“We’re looking forward to it,” Lucero said. “We’re excited to have a season this year, and we’ll see what happens.”
