By Cyote Williams | Times Vedette
Panorama and ACGC’s baseball and softball seasons are officially underway. Baseball players hit the diamonds last week, and the softball players did so this week. Just like we do at the Guthrie County Times Vedette each season, our summer sports guide will be releasing soon with interviews from the respective coaches of both schools. They both have their teams, and me, excited for the summer.
The ACGC baseball team is led by Nick McCool. His Chargers reached double-digit wins at 10-14 after only winning two games the previous season. Plus, against 1A competition, the Chargers went 10-2. That’s the unfortunate reality in the West Central, as you are going to up against some bigger schools. The team did get some solid production out of seniors, but ACGC returns its two best hitters in Tommy and Will Skram. It will be fun to see how the rest of the season goes for them.
For ACGC softball, the girls had a down season last year, finishing 2-21. This was partly expected, due to losing a large and talented senior class heading into the year. With those seniors gone, a young crop of talent stepped into their places and gained plenty of worthwhile experience that should help them greatly this season. Karli Kautzky was the team’s best hitter last season and is expecting another great year. Tyler Merical’s team could improve a great deal this season, and it will be enjoyable to follow along.
On the Panorama side, the baseball team had its own struggles, and they happened in a similar manner to the ACGC softball team. The Panthers had many talented seniors in 2023-2024 who led them to double-digit wins. Replacing them was difficult. The team went 5-18 with several close losses. With fewer seniors to replace this season, and younger players gaining plenty of experience last season, Coach Brian Bahrenfuss says the Panthers could start to right the ship this season.
Panorama softball struggled in the West Central last year, finishing at the bottom of the conference despite winning nine games. The WCAC is no joke, plus the Panthers were leaning on young talent. But that young talent absolutely produced. The four best hitters for the Panthers were an eighth-grader, two freshman and a sophomore — all who put up solid stats, all who are returning. Plus, two of those great hitters, Lexi Galvan and Andrea Knode, were the team’s best pitchers last season. Head Coach Ismael Galvan told me his seniors are leading the way, and his younger players are following along. With plenty of playing time gained last season, and with few players to replace, it is entirely possible that these Panthers hit double-digit wins for the first time since 2021.
Baseball and softball were not my favorite sports growing up, but as time has gone on, I’ve gained a deeper appreciation for both. Baseball is America’s past time after all, and softball brings its own charm to the plate as well. It will be fun to follow along this summer.
Reach out with comments, suggestions, story ideas and more to cyote@dmcityview.com.