On the cusp of softball season, the Eastside Lady Eagles are looking to capitalize on the talent they have.

Following a 23-7 2023 campaign highlighted by a Region 8-AAAAA title and a trip to Columbus for the state playoff, head coach Heather Wood shared why she believes this year’s team has the ability to get back.

“We are really excited to get started,” Wood said. “This year, we are fortunate to have a plethora of experience and leadership. These players right here [Donee Morain and Anslee Saunchegraw] have been an important part of our success the last couple of seasons, but we are really excited.”

Wood, Morain, Saunchegraw and assistant coach Shane Griffin spoke at Newton County’s Fall Sports Media Day.

Last season, Morian ended the season with Player of the Year honors and Saunchegraw received First Team All-Region honors for Region 8-AAAAA.

Both players are coming off long travel ball seasons that took them all over the country.

“This summer I played a lot of travel ball,” Saunchegraw said. “So all summer, [it was] different states each week. I just got back from California a couple days ago, we had a good run there. I also do summer practices throughout the week. We do Monday through Wednesday for two to 2.5 hours. We get together as a team, we go through our plays, we take a lot of reps. Individually, we work every day along with the travel ball, so we get a lot of reps throughout the summer.”

Similar to her teammate, Morain took the travel ball season as just another way to elevate her game.

“I’ve been to Colorado and California [for travel ball],” Morain said. “In practice, yes we may do the same routines, but everyday I feel like we get better. Even with our freshmen. Every day we just strive to be great. Even mentally, we get better everyday and strive to be better with every step and every drill.”

The end of last season also marked the end of the careers of Dezaria “Z” Johnson and Lila Whitmire, two All-Region seniors that started for Wood last season.

Along with her bat, Johnson served as one of the two primary pitchers for eastside last season.

With Johnson graduated and off to Rutgers, Griffin shed light on who else may take the mound along with Eva Davis, who tallied 98.1 innings pitched in 2023. In particular, Griffin discussed Kylee Lawrence, a player who transferred to Eastside over the offseason.

“She [Lawrence] was at Jackson High School last year. She did well for them and helped them get to Columbus,” Griffin said. “We also have another junior, Allie Vaughn. She pitched a little bit her freshman year but not so much last year. She has worked a lot this summer and we think she is going to contribute a lot.”

Vaughn spent most of her time at shortstop a year ago. At the plate, she had a .301 batting average to go along with 28 hits and 19 runs batted in.

This year’s Eastside team has three seniors, but the experience goes far beyond just those three.

“Every year we have high expectations. Our goal is to put ourselves in a spot to advance to Columbus and ultimately compete for a state championship and have that opportunity,” Wood said. “This year, we feel like we have the team to do that. We have three seniors, seven juniors. We are returning seven starters, so feel like we have a team that can compete at that level. We are really just excited to get started.”

Outside of losing those two seniors, another new obstacle for the team is a new region.

Over the offseason, Eastside jumped down a classification as it moved from Region 8-AAAAA to Region 8-AAAA. The new region puts the Lady Eagles in matchups with opponents such as North Oconee, Cedar Shoals, Flowery Branch, Madison County, East Forsyth and Walnut Grove.

“Coming into a new classification and region is tough. We know that it's one of the best in the state,” Wood said. “That is only going to make us better as a team. Winning region last year sets the bar even higher. We know, being at Eastside, you have a long tradition of winning so I think that every year the expectation is high. We put a lot of expectations on ourselves to maintain that. Going against some of the best teams in the state is going to pay off in the end.”

As the team traverses the challenges of a new region, Saunchegraw discusses how the team’s bond will be one of its strongest assets.

“We are all pretty close, me and Donee hang out so much outside of school,” Saunchegraw said. “We always get together, especially during the summer. When we are free we always hang out during the summer. Always going out to eat after practices. 

“How you work together plays such a big part in how successful we have been over the years. Since freshman year we have always had a close group of girls. I don’t believe you can be successful without having that connection between your teammates.”