Spring into Valley Baseball, Softball Seasons on March 21

One sure sign that spring is here is the start of the 2023 baseball and softball season at Kalamazoo Valley Community College! The first official conference games will be away ones, with softball at 3 p.m. Tuesday, March 21 at Jackson Community College and with baseball at 2 p.m. Tuesday, March 21 at Kellogg Community College.

The first home games will be 3 p.m. Friday, March 24 for softball vs. Marian University’s Ancilla College, and 2 p.m. Thursday, March 23 for baseball vs. Lake Michigan Community College. Admission is free to all home games.

The Lady Cougars are excited to roll into the season with a strong returning sophomore class and a gritty, hard-working freshmen class. Facing a tough conference and non-conference schedule, team members are looking to show off their hard work and dedication this spring on their way to a regional title. They have instilled a winning culture and punch-back attitude in all that they do.

“Offensively, the girls play smart and are willing to sacrifice for the betterment of the team,” said Head Coach Emily VanFleet. “We have an incredible amount of versatility and depth in our lineup. Our speed mixed with knowledge of the game produces extra bases and more opportunities to score.”

Defensively, VanFleet said the team has a roster of five powerhouse pitchers that throw in their own individual style giving opponents a more challenging time at the plate. “Behind our pitching roster between our depth in the outfield and grittiness in the infield, the Cougars will go into the season challenging opponents in every aspect of the game,” she said.

Baseball team

The baseball team is looking to bounce back after a difficult 2022 campaign where a very inexperienced Cougar squad came up against a highly competitive conference. The sting of missing regionals was a motivating factor when this year’s team trained and learned how to play together in the fall, showing steady improvement. The Cougars will participate in pre-conference games during a lengthy Southern trip to Tennessee and Florida at the end of February.

“This will be an excellent opportunity to start with an aggressive schedule and gain some game action before the conference season begins late March,” Head Coach Steve Bennecke said.

In his second year as a coach, Bennecke is joined again this season by John Hemingway and Brian Neel, both of whom have a great number of years coaching. The newcomer, Trenton Quartermaine, is joining the staff after a successful career at Kalamazoo Valley and earning All-Mac First Team Honors at Ball State last season.

The team will bring back its top three hitters from last year, Kris Stojanovski, Mitch Herder and Parker Neel. The experience these hitters will bring will be a valuable asset to a solid lineup. Freshmen Garrett Swan and Jose Gutierrez will lead the freshmen class, along with Will Sachwitz, Brendan Burch and Nolan Adkins. The pitching staff will be led by transfer student Korbin Griffin and last year conference starter Ryan Dotson. The Cougars will also rely on freshmen Carson Winans and Quentin Dennis to round out the staff.