The Van-Far softball program has finished with single digit victories each of the previous three seasons.

The Lady Indians are coming off a four-win campaign but will have a great amount of change with a ton of underclassmen and new head coach Cameron Huff. After leading the baseball team to a district title two years ago and its most ever wins with 12 last season, Huff takes over as the softball coach.

Huff said he has held practice with the girls in July before fall practices started on Aug. 11. He said there is plenty of varsity inexperience but experience in leagues such as travel ball on the roster of 20 girls. The three seniors are Trinity Skwirtz, Elaina Brogden and Mariah Maggard.

“This year, the goal is to win games that we should win and compete,” Huff said. “Competing in games is the big thing this year. We just want to continue building.”

In his first year, Huff said he wants to lean heavily on juniors like Elliott Utterback, Mylee Keller and Kenya Jones. Utterback and Keller each made the all-district team a season ago.

Huff said there is good potential out of newcomers like Addy Barnett, who is a freshman pitcher. He said Bryanna Stanich is another intriguing name after playing junior varsity a year ago and should be a centerfielder. 

“A lot of sophomores and freshmen are going to get a lot of varsity time,” Huff said. 

Huff said his first impressions of his new team have been positive. He affectionately called them “goofy” because they bring a lighthearted attitude to the field and that ties into chemistry being “through the roof” with the team.

On top of that, Huff said they have shown to be capable, responding well in situations at practice. The Lady Indians are a “vocal” group. 

“Typically, I’ll let a situation go through and then I’ll stop and coach it,” Huff said about the team’s first fall practice. “Yesterday, there wasn’t a lot of stopping. They reacted to a lot of situations better than I thought they were going to.”

Prior to the baseball team’s previous two seasons under Huff, the Indians won one game with about 10 on the roster. The roster and win total grew and Huff would like to see that out of the softball program.

“Teaching them the correct fundamentals,” Huff said. “I saw that with baseball. Our successes have grown over the years over focusing a lot on fundamentals. When I watch other teams and other coaches, they try to focus on everything. As long as we field a ball, throw a ball and hit a ball, that’s the main priority right there. We have to have a firm foundation.”