[2/21/03]If fast-pitch softball is a pitcher’s game, the St. Aloysius Lady Flashes figure to be one of the top teams in Class 1A and 2A again this year.

St. Al boasts a pair of solid pitchers among six returning starters, and are looking to build on last year’s trip to the South State championship series.

“If the hitting comes, if we can hit the ball, we can make it to the (playoffs). After that, it depends on who you play,” St. Al coach Gene Rogillio said. “I think we’ll definitely be back in the playoffs again.”

Laura Beth Lyons, who went 12-4 last season with a 0.75 ERA and 108 strikeouts in 116 innings, returns as the ace of the staff. Sarah Kerut, an eighth-grader who went 3-3 with a 1.66 ERA in seven games last season, gives the Lady Flashes a solid No. 2 pitcher that few teams in their class can match.

“There’s not too many 1A teams, or even 2A teams, that can put two pitchers on the mound of that caliber, especially when one is an eighth-grader,” Rogillio said.

Backing them up on defense is an experienced infield that has four starters returning. Senior Kelly Haden, who hit .359 with five triples and a team-best 21 RBIs last season, will play first base and also anchor the lineup.

Lyons and Kerut will share time at shortstop, depending on the pitcher, and Mary Myers Franco will play third base. Sophomore Candice Park, a three-year starter who hit .368 last season, will catch.

“I think pitching is going to be really important, because everything is revolved around that in the game, and we’ll be OK with everybody backing us up,” Lyons said.

Rogillio hasn’t settled on a second baseman, but said junior Catherine Jenkins will see time there and in the outfield. When she plays in the outfield, she’ll be joined by Caitlin Moak and senior Stephanie Evans.

“Defensively in the outfield, we may not be as fast as we were last year, so we may have to play a little smarter,” Rogillio said.

A look at the St. Al roster may indicate a rebuilding year the team only has two seniors and five juniors but Rogillio felt it was just the opposite. With a large number of seventh- and eighth-graders in the program, St. Al will have a junior varsity team for the first time.

“I’ve got six seventh-graders playing softball, and they want to play … I think the future of softball at St. Al looks great,” Rogillio said. “I’m not looking for it to be a rebuilding year. I’m looking for us to be competitive.”