Coaches predict: Mtn. View

It's never easy predicting which teams will be tough before many games are played. Nowhere is that more true than in 4A high school softball this season.

In a preseason poll of 4A coaches, there were as many variations of the top five as there are teams. The majority seem to think Mountain View, with seven returning senior starters, will be the team to beat.

"We do have a lot of senior leadership back," Bruin coach Cal Jones said. Many of those seniors were on the state championship team of two seasons ago. Among the returning starters are all-state pitcher Chelsey Mikalauski, all-state shortstop Mallary Gillespie and all-state catcher Jane Wright.

Jones is taking the season slow and focusing on just helping the younger players keep up with the seniors, who all know what it's like to be in that final game of the season.

"The juniors will have to step up and fill the holes," he said. "The seniors will help, and we'll try to build on that."

The Bruins will have a lot of challenges along the way from within their own region and the rest of 4A. Defending state champion Bonneville was voted No. 2, and the team they beat for that title, Region 4 rival Box Elder, was chosen No. 3.

Both return a core of talented players and should be in the mix in May.

There are also a number of other teams, some perennial powers, others relative newcomers to the rankings, that coaches believe will be in contention for the title.

Murray is almost always Region 5 champion, but this year another Region 5 team starts the season ranked fifth, Bountiful.

"I think we've always run a pretty good program," coach Kelly Anderson said, "but this year we return eight of our 10 top players. . . . I think we have a chance to do some good things."

Among the returning starters are all-staters Mindy Smith, Rachel Toone and Katie Weese.

The Spartans lost three-time all-state pitcher Brittney Vanderwerff to graduation, but they have two talented young throwers sharing time on the mound: Whitney Holmes, a sophomore, who threw quite a bit last season, and coach Lisa Parker's daughter, Brittany Parker, who is just a freshman.

"I think we'll do pretty well," Lisa Parker said. While some of her players are young, they've all played a lot of softball in accelerated and summer leagues. "They're all real experienced players."

And the Spartans hope not only to notch another region title but also take that success to the state tournament, where the team's last state title came in 1990 when it was a 3A school.

In addition to the five ranked teams, some of the other teams to be on the lookout for are Spanish Fork, Orem, Roy and Payson.

Preseason Rankings

1. Mountain View

2. Bonneville

3. Box Elder

4. Murray

5. Bountiful

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E-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com