The Mexico softball team led in its district semifinal game last season.

The Lady Bulldogs lost 9-8 to St. Dominic to end their first Class 4 district tournament but have almost everybody back for this season for head coach Hanna Jones. 

Jones said there are 29 girls in the program this season with most of the 12-15 girls on varsity as the same girls who made that postseason run. The difference is each girl has one more year of experience.

“Last year, we were pretty young, but I still feel we performed really well for how young we were,” Jones said. “We had several starters who were freshmen.”

Juniors include all-conference and all-district Mexico pitchers Keerstan Ewing and Aleigha Henderson, who respectively bring accuracy and spin while they both will have more confidence in the circle. Jones said Alyssa Miller handled a defensive premium position of shortstop well as a freshman, and fellow sophomore Scottie Smith brings valuable versatility to the lineup.

Any younger players can lean on Mexico’s seniors, and  Jones said that starts with all-conference, all-district and all-region catcher Hannah Loyd. On top of being one of Mexico’s best hitters, Jones said Loyd does well holding baserunners and working with pitchers.

“She is a huge leader defensively,” Jones said. “She brings intimidation and is good insurance on keeping runners at bay and not having baserunners be too aggressive.”

Jones said other seniors who are returning to varsity excel in their roles. For example, all-conference, all-district and all-region player Maddy Feger covers the outfield so well along with having a strong arm and is a reliable hitter with power and speed in the lineup. Landri Teel is a workhorse who covers mistakes at first base and is a core hitter who was all-conference and all-district a year ago, and Kayleigh Samuelson brings more speed to the outfield and has been clutch in situations.

“They’re really good mentally for the team and really encouraging,” Jones said. “They bring a good presence of guidance on the field for the younger girls to set us up for success.”

Jones said the lineup can’t be talked about without junior Payton Shaw. She said she loves the amount of power she brings to the lineup, which features a good mix of girls with power and speed. 

The advantage of having so many returners is Jones already has a good idea of what kind of team she has for this season. It will be a matter of further strengthening those areas.

“Defensively, we were really solid last year,” Jones said. “Girls handled me putting them in different positions, like I had pitchers and infielders go to the outfield. They adapted to every game.”

Jones said Mexico has a lot of confidence in its defense and its ability to string hits together. Now the team wants to turn that into results and avoid beating itself too often. 

“We were close last year — so close we could taste it,” Jones said. “Our goal this year is to make it past those district semifinals. I think we got in our own way and hope to be stronger mentally.”