NEW PALESTINE — There was no hesitation when New Palestine softball coach Ed Marcum asked his seniors what their goal for 2019 was.
The two-time defending state champions want another accolade, one that has eluded them in both their 2017 and 2018 title runs.
“(Coach) asked us seniors what our goal was for wins and losses,” senior Emma Tucher said. “We all automatically said, ‘Undefeated.’ We want it that bad.”
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The Dragons are confident, and for good reason. They were 31-2 in 2017 and won a championship. They went 30-1 last year and won a title.
That lone loss though, a 3-2 defeat at Class 4A powerhouse Center Grove, was one too many. New Palestine finished last season ranked No. 4 in the nation according to MaxPreps, and they start this season in the top 10 of the national poll and at No. 1 in Class 3A in the state.
They want that perfect record to go with a three-peat.
“I think we’re really confident. Not cocky, but confident,” senior Emily O’Connor said. “We’ve just been together for so long, it’s hard to get away from that chemistry. We’re comfortable out there. It’s not pressure or anything. We just feel like we have a job to do, and it’s an honor to do it.”
Every year, Marcum and his teams come up with a new motto. Last year was “Championship Mindset,” and the Dragons lived by that motto on a daily basis.
This year the motto is “Compete to Complete.” It’s a motto the coach and players have different views on, but it fits for both.
“Their idea was to complete the three-peat. My idea is more on a day-by-day basis,” Marcum said. “You’ve got to complete the practices, you’ve got to complete the games. Go hard, compete every game. Like usual we’ve got a target on our back. It just might be a little bigger this year.”
To earn a third straight championship, New Palestine will have to overcome several sizable obstacles.
First, they have to find a way to replace Miss Softball. Ashley Prange, now playing for Ohio State, wrapped up her high school career last year with a slew of accolades, a bunch of team and state records, and a massive stat line.
“It’s never been about one player,” Marcum said. “Obviously, Ashley had a great career, and the thing I hear from the girls is how they miss Ashley. It really doesn’t have anything to do with her numbers that she put up on the diamond. They miss her because of the type of person she was and kind of the leadership that she had. She’s just fun to be around. I think with this senior class, they are really close. I think they’ll all just step up and do a little more. You don’t replace players like her, like Miss Softball. But with the depth that we have, I’m confident that we can go out without missing a beat.”
In steps junior Michaela Jones, who played at catcher for the last two years but will return to her natural position of shortstop this year with Prange gone. Jones was all-county, all-conference and earned second-team all-state a year ago after hitting .569 with 10 home runs and 44 RBIs.
The junior has been battling a back injury sustained during basketball season, but the Dragons hope to see her play in tonight’s opener.
With Jones moving out from behind the plate, that leaves an opening at catcher. Two JV catchers from last year, junior Raegan Hiatt and sophomore Vivian Long, are even in a position battle so far this spring, and could both see time.
Another question mark for New Palestine is at the starting pitcher position, a spot left open by the graduation of Mackenzie Jones, Michaela’s older sister.
Again, the Dragons appear to have an answer in place. Last year’s No. 2 pitcher, Kaylea Bullock, will slide into the top spot this year. She sported a perfect 10-0 record in 2018, throwing 76 innings and notching a 2.21 ERA and 90 strikeouts.
“Kaylea will be our workhorse, but I’m comfortable with our other pitchers, also,” Marcum said. “We had nine pitchers in our program this winter. They’re pushing each other, trying to step up.”
Marcum said that he expects to use quite a few pitchers this year, starting with sophomore Sam Booe, who is currently the No. 2 pitcher. The team also has several freshmen who the coach hopes to get some varsity experience. Senior Macy Miller, who plays first base, could also see some time on the mound.
The final big challenge for the Dragons comes from their schedule. The degree of difficulty has ramped way up from a year ago. New Palestine is slated to face eight teams ranked in the Top 10 right now — six in Class 4A, one in 3A and one from Kentucky.
Two of those teams — Decatur Central in 4A and Louisville Male — boast No. 1 rankings in their states.
“We’ve always had a pretty 4A-dominated schedule,” Marcum said. “We’re excited. We welcome the challenge. We’ve never tried to stay away from anybody. The better competition we’ll play, the better it will make us. But we’re going to have to learn, too, throughout the season. We already had one of the toughest schedules in the state, so we’re going to have to come to play every night.”
“We’ll see head-to-head where we stand,” O’Connor added. “I think it’s fun. I don’t think many of us are nervous. We’ll see how good we are.”
This year’s version of the Dragons will be powered by six seniors, double the number from last year’s team. Three play in the infield and three in the outfield.
Jaylin Calvert, Tucher and Sarah Greene all play in the outfield. In the infield, O’Connor is at third base, Tatum Biddle returns at second base and Miller will be at first.
That Dragons have four returning all-county seniors — Calvert, O’Connor, Biddle and Miller — and a ton of firepower coming back, as the six seniors combined for 34 home runs and 172 RBIs a year ago.
“It’s awesome,” O’Connor said of having a big senior class. “I think all of us hold each other accountable. None of us is better than the other. We all listen to each other, and it’s great communication.”
The road to a potential three-peat is scheduled to begin tonight with a road game at Southport. The goal of going undefeated will be challenged right away, as the Dragons will open at home, weather permitting, Wednesday against Avon, ranked No. 7 in 4A.
“Going back to our team chemistry, I think that’s going to help us a lot this year in maybe going undefeated,” Tucher said. “Obviously there’s a lot of pressure, because there’s a big target on our back. But one of our past mottos was, ‘Pressure is a Privilege.’ That is really true. We’re just really excited. We have a lot of high goals for ourselves.”
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New Palestine Dragons
Coach: Ed Marcum (16th year)
Last season: 30-1, 7-0 HHC; won state championiship
Key returnees: 3B Emily O’Connor (.392, 8 HR, 38 RBI), 2B Tatum Biddle (.485, 9 HR, 33 RBI), 1B Macy Miller (.461, 8 HR, 37 RBI), CF Jaylin Calvert (.450, 9 HR, 43 RBI), RF Emma Tucher (.397, 20 RBI), seniors; SS Michaela Jones (.569, 10 HR, 44 RBI), P Kaylea Bullock (2.20 ERA, 10-0 record, 90 K in 76.1 IP), juniors
Top newcomers: C Raegan Hiatt, junior; P Sam Booe, UTIL Lexi Campbell, C Vivian Long, sophomores
Outlook: The Dragons, who start the year ranked No. 1 in Class 3A, should be the heavy favorites to win their third straight state championship. Three starters are gone, but six return from the 2018 title holders. Replacing shortstop Ashley Prange, who earned numerous accolades including Gatorade’s Indiana Player of the Year and Miss Softball, is the big question mark, but No. 1 pitcher Mackenzie Jones won’t be easy to replace, either. The Dragons have pieces in place to try to do that in junior Michaela Jones, sliding into Prange’s position from catcher, and junior Kaylea Bullock, who rotated with Mackenzie Jones last year. New Palestine ramped the difficulty of its schedule way up this year, so seeing a few more losses in the overall record wouldn’t be a surprise. Expectations are and should be high for the Dragons, though. Anything short of a long tournament run would be a surprise.
Notable: New Palestine faces six teams ranked in the Top 10 in Class 4A, one ranked in the Top 10 of Class 3A, and one nationally-ranked team. The Dragons also face five teams in the “receiving votes” categories in the preseason.
Schedule
Date;Opponent;Time
April 2;at Southport;5:30 p.m.
April 3;Avon;5:30 p.m.
April 5;at New Castle;5:30 p.m.
April 8;Columbus East;5:30 p.m.
April 10;Franklin Central;6 p.m.
April 11;at HSE;5:30 p.m.
April 16;Yorktown;5:30 p.m.
April 17;at Zionsville;5:30 p.m.
April 18;Mt. Vernon;5:30 p.m.
April 20;at Seymour;11 a.m.
April 22;Noblesville;5:30 p.m.
April 24;Center Grove;5:30 p.m.
April 25;Shelbyville;5:30 p.m.
April 27;Roncalli;12 p.m.
April 30;at Cathedral;5:30 p.m.
May 1;at Pendleton Heights;5:30 p.m.
May 2;Greenfield-Central;5:30 p.m.
May 4;at Jennings County invite;10 a.m.
May 7;Connersville;5:30 p.m.
May 8;at Fishers;5:30 p.m.
May 9;Decatur Central;5:30 p.m.
May 11;at Kankakee Valley;10 a.m.
May 11;at Crown Point; 2 p.m.
May 14;Kokomo;5:30 p.m.
May 16;at Lutheran;5:30 p.m.
May 17;at Delta;5:30 p.m.
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