CORTEZ – To say that the Montezuma-Cortez Panthers softball team wasn’t satisfied with its 2023 fall campaign would be a vast understatement.
The Panthers want to make sure history doesn’t repeat itself this season.
Fifth-year head coach Anthony “Hippo” Frost knows that the Panther cupboard is fully stocked with talent up and down the lineup card – a necessity if the Panthers’ plans of vaulting back up to the top of the 3A Western Slope League come to fruition.
A half-dozen seniors enter their final season with the orange-and-black.
Abigail Coffey, Neveah Istenes, Julia West, Devyn Cornett, Aubrey Rutherford and Emily Carver form the Class of 2025 crew that spent the offseason honing its craft for the final hurrah.
“We’re ready to get the ball rolling because we know we have some big shoes to fill,” Istenes said. “We’ve been focused since our offseason workouts began in January.”
Istenes leads a loaded returning infield, where the Panthers look to play shutdown defense behind Cornett and sophomore Jayden White. Cornett struck out approximately a batter per inning over her 100-plus innings in the circle.
Coffey and West will help patrol the outfield for the Panthers, while a talented crew of underclassmen continue to find more reps within the starting nine, with the seniors showing them the ropes.
“I really liked to see how our upperclassmen were coaching the younger players during our offseason, so that’s helping us to keep moving in the right direction for years to come,” Frost said of the leadership displayed by his seniors.
The offense enjoyed plenty of hot stretches throughout the 2023 season, with the team batting nearly .400 as a unit. However, the Panthers ended the year dropping seven of its final nine games – including its Round of 32 playoff opener against Fort Lupton – and seeing visions of another league title and deep postseason run be ripped away.
After seeing their span of four straight years above .500 come to a halt, the Panthers eye another winning season.
“The coaches inspire confidence in us when we step to the plate. We know that we’re a hitting team, so we know if we see a strike we’re going to ready to go after it,” Coffey said.
Montezuma-Cortez, which went 11-13 last season, proved its potential for extra-base hits. By merely putting the ball in play, the Panthers apply pressure on opposing defenses with stolen bases.
“We’re more mentally prepared when we step into the box, it’s just you against the ball,” Istenes said of the Panthers’ focus at the plate.
Montezuma-Cortez looks to make a statement early in the season, but the Panthers will have to do so away from the friendly confines of Englehart Field.
Montezuma-Cortez, which opened its season Thursday in Cedaredge, face a staggering Western Slope road trip to Gunnison (Saturday), Durango (Aug. 27), Delta (Aug. 29) and Meeker (Aug. 31).
The Panthers will play their first home game of the season on Sept. 10 against the Demons. The Panthers will also close out their regular season with five straight home dates.
“Coach Hippo reminds us to play with our heart and not with our head, and that’s helped us to not focus on how stressful the game can be – and let us go day-by-day and continue to have fun,” said West, who led the team in stolen bases last year. “We have a lot more drive this season and we’re all working to the same goals – so out on the field, we’re all sisters.”
Coffey said the team “definitely” understands that 2024 will be the players’ last opportunity they’ll have together, adding they look to “take advantage of that.”
