Picking which team might eventually win the Liberty District and 6D North Region tournament championships in girls high-school softball this spring has grown increasingly more difficult in recent days.
That’s because the competition appears wide open among many squads.
The Madison Warhawks were expected to be a clear front-runner to win the Concorde District, then region crowns. That was until top talent Katelynn Park was lost for the season with a knee injury late during the preseason. Park was expected to be one of the top pitchers and hitters in the region, as she was last spring.
Madison continues to play well and win without the senior, and remains a top region contender. But the Warhawks certainly don’t yet possess that same shutdown type of pitching in Park’s absence. The Warhawks continue to score a lot of runs, but they are yielding more without Park.
The defending region-champion Washington-Liberty Generals return many players from last season, including their No. 1 pitcher. The Liberty District team has struggled at times this season, but is playing better now, and could get hot again during the postseason. The Generals remain a top district-tournament and region contender, but so are many other teams in that Liberty league.
The Marshall Statesmen are another top Liberty squad, along with the Wakefield Warriors, McLean Highlanders and Langley Saxons. Any of those teams could win the district title, then maybe the region. Those teams have taken turns defeating one another during the regular season.
Don’t count out the Yorktown Patriots, either. They have been competitive in their games against those previously-mentioned Liberty opponents.
The regular season wraps up this week. Then the fun and uncertainty of the playoffs begin.
We’ll see what happens.