Seven seniors crucial for Lady Tiger success

The Demopolis High softball team got its season rolling Tuesday with a 1-2 mark in a trio of games at the Hillcrest Round Robin in Tuscaloosa.

The Lady Tigers picked up a win over American Christian Academy and suffered losses to Brookwood and Hillcrest on the day.

DHS will waste time getting more experience under its belt as it heads to the Patriot Classic Friday where it will play Northside, Moody and Hale County before heading into tournament play Saturday.

With such a challenging front end of the scheduled, the Lady Tigers will likely have to rely heavily on their seven seniors for leadership and production.

That will be the theme for DHS for much of the season as it will have seniors at pitcher, catcher, first base, second base, third base and left field this season.

Returning starters Sidney Colyar and Olivia Brame will handle third base and second base respectively. Victoria Washburn moves from right field to left field while Courtney Lawrence takes over full-time first base duties.

The biggest change for the Lady Tigers in 2013 will come in its battery. Four-year starting pitcher Madison Laduron graduated a season ago, leaving the responsibility of the circle to Danielle Tatum and Zoe Lewis.

“I’m asking both of them to be able to pitch every ballgame and to be able to work together,” Demopolis head coach Joey Browder said of his senior pitching duo. “They’ve responded well.”

While Tatum and Lewis will often be called upon to share pitching duties, they will be throwing to senior Alexis Jones, who will take over behind the plate.

Jones has put in innings behind the plate for each of the last four years after having been called into high school action as an eighth grader. She replaces incumbent starter Riley King, who will move to shortstop this season.

“Alexis only got minimal play at catcher last year,” Browder said. “She has come on strong. We’re looking for Alexis to anchor the catching position.”

While seniors populate most of the Demopolis lineup, the outfield will be left largely to underclassmen. Tatum is likely to see playing time in center when she is not pitching, but those duties will fall largely on the capable shoulders of Cameron Thomasson, who missed most of the 2012 season due to injury.

Right field duties will belong to Jade Montgomery, a sophomore who saw her primary varsity playing time come on the base paths a season ago.

“Jade Montgomery has come on strong in right and I’m look at – depending on pitching – a combination of Tatum and Cam Thomasson in center field,” Browder said. “(Thomasson’s) speed definitely brings an element to the game. I think the big thing for Cam and Jade is to realize that they can do the job and just to respond.”