Caribou Chatter
Doug Flanagan
Kodiaks ready for opponents' best efforts
By Doug Flanagan
April 06, 2011
The Cascade High School fastpitch softball team is most likely going to play motivated opponents every time it plays a Caribou Trail League contest this season. But that’s what happens when a team makes a mockery of a league as Cascade has over the past four years. The Kodiaks have lost just three league games during that time span.
Cascade will be ready for those challenges, however. Coach Todd Gilbert is stressing a simple concept to his team: Focus on how you can get better on the field, and don’t worry about your opposition or anything else.
“(The prospect of taking the other team’s best shot) is something that we’ve talked about,” Gilbert said. “Last season we felt that that was going to be the case, and (the feeling) is a little bit extra this year (because) the perception might be that we’re not quite as good as we’ve been over the last two years, and a lot of teams are going to like to have that opportunity (to beat us).
“I think we’ve worked pretty hard to have the mindset to be ready for that. We control how we get ready and how we play, and we don’t put a lot of (thought) into things that we don’t control.”
The Kodiaks lost four seniors to graduation, three of them first-team all-league selections, including pitcher Taylor Gilbert.
However, that doesn’t mean that Todd Gilbert is ready to admit that he’s overseeing a rebuilding club. The Kodiaks are 5-2 overall through Tuesday, and 3-0 in CTL play.
“We have a young team, and it’s taking a little while to find our own identity, but strong leadership has stepped forward, and it seems to be coming around now,” Gilbert said. “We got off to a slow start, but our pitching is very strong, and we’re starting to hit the ball a bit.”
Entering the season, one of the main questions surrounding the Kodiaks was who would replace Taylor Gilbert as the team’s ace in the pitching circle. So far, though, it seems as if sophomore Taliyah Riddick-Waters has firmly put an end to those queries.
Riddick-Waters has been dominant so far. Her finest performance came on April 2, when she won both ends of a doubleheader against Omak. She didn’t allow a run all day, gave up just one hit and struck out seven in the opener and fired a no-hitter with eight punchouts in the nightcap.
The no-no was the second of Riddick-Waters’ career; she picked up her first last year against Brewster.
Last season she served as a fine No. 2 hurler behind Taylor Gilbert, posting a 6-1 record. But it seems as she’s capable of much more this year.
“She’s matured as far as her approach to the game and her role on the team, but she’s not really a flappable kid in any way,” Gilbert said. “She’s not going to let pressure or other things get to her. She’s confident out there in the circle. She was that way as a freshman.”
Riddick-Waters is a hard thrower, but her variety of pitches could make her an elite hurler.
“Like all pitchers, when she gets ahead in the count, she’s very tough to deal with,” Gilbert said. “She throws hard and has good movement on her pitches, and when she uses those well and gets her change-up across, she’s very tough to deal with. She throws hard, but she’s usually close to hitting her spot with her pitches. She throws harder than Taylor did, so when you add the movement and the change of speed, that makes (the fastball) that much more effective. She’s established herself as a No. 1 pitcher, and she’s been very consistent.”
Junior Ali Schauer, in her first season as a varsity contributor, has emerged as a solid No. 2 pitcher as well. On Tuesday, she turned in a fine performance against a good Cle Elum squad, allowing just two hits in a Kodiak victory.
“We feel like we have a nice one-two combination in the circle,” Gilbert said.
Offensively, Gilbert has two returning players in senior Clairissa DeLaVergne and junior Kaija Cheyne that he can count on for consistent performances.
Both players have made position switches this season.
“Clairissa started at third base for us last year and hit the ball well,” Gilbert said. “This year we’re using her as our designated player, and she got off to a slow start, but the last couple games she’s swung the bat very well, (showing) extra-base hit (power).
“Kaija was our shortstop last year, and we moved her over to first base this season. She’s done a nice job for us making that adjustment. She’s swung a good stick, even though she doesn’t have much to show for it yet.”
But the player who might prove to be the most critical to Cascade’s offensive production is junior Halee Ross. The outfielder struggled with her hitting early on last year and was often replaced by a designated player in the Kodiaks’ lineup as a result.
But Ross has emerged in a big way this year, hitting over .500 through Tuesday as the team’s leadoff hitter.
“We really need (her production) because she has good speed,” Gilbert said. “She’s been setting the table well so far. She’s a left-handed slap hitter, and this year she’s being more aggressive, putting the ball in play and using her speed to get aboard.”
Even though the CTL might indeed have a closer race this season than in past years, it probably wouldn’t surprise a lot of people if Cascade ended up in its customary position at the top of the standings by the end of the season.
But Gilbert and the Kodiaks aren’t taking anything for granted. That’s why they’re prepared for each opponent’s best effort.
“For the last two years, there has been a good separation between us and the rest of the league, especially last year,” Gilbert said. “I think that Chelan is more experienced (this season) and has a good pitcher. Cashmere has experience and good pitchers. Omak has added to its pitching depth. Okanogan is another year experienced. The whole league last year was young. Even though we had just a few seniors, we may have been the most experienced team. Everybody has stepped up a bit heading into this year.
“(But) we expect to be right in the thick of the battle for the league championship.”
