Bucs ready to pick up where they left off

There’s certainly a renewed sense of gratitude within the Hoover High School softball program. Preseason hitting practice on a chilly day elicited nothing but smiles.

“It’s awesome,” Hoover head coach Lexi Shrout said. “We’re excited to be back on the field and not taking opportunities for granted this time.”

Last spring, the Bucs were 5-6-1 at the time the season was cut short because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But Hoover had a talented team starting to round into form in mid-March.

“They’re just looking to pick up where we left off last year,” Shrout said. “We’re missing those seniors. They want an opportunity to prove what they could’ve done.”

The Bucs had five impactful seniors a season ago, four of whom are now playing at the college level. This year’s team has just a couple seniors — pitchers Brookelyn Cannon and Liz Lewis.

“We’re very diverse in age range,” Shrout said, noting that the Bucs will have plenty of sophomores and juniors contributing in major ways.

Cannon is a Troy signee and spearheads a pitching staff that also includes Emily Sims and freshman Olivia Christian. Lewis has the distinction of being one of the rare pitchers capable of throwing with both arms.

“We have leadership out of our senior group, but there’s leaders in every class. People lead at different times in different moments,” Shrout said.

Campbell Hecklinski returns as the Bucs’ primary catcher, along with outfielder Gracie Hillman and infielder Carolyne Hecklinski as players that started much of last season. There are plenty of spots on the field where the Bucs will need other players — some experienced and some new.

“It’s a blessing and a curse as a coach,” Shrout said. “You have so many at one spot, and it’s deciding who we want out there at that moment. To be honest, there’s several that can play.”

Cannon and Campbell Hecklinski supply a good bit of power in the middle of the Hoover lineup, but the rest of the Bucs’ lineup could be an interesting mix of speed and pop.

“We have five slappers, and all of them could potentially start, so we could have a really interesting lineup,” Shrout said.

Hoover is competing this year in Class 7A, Area 5 against Thompson and Tuscaloosa County. The Bucs have every reason to believe they can be one of the top two teams from that threesome to advance to the regional tournament and potentially beyond.

“It’ll be competitive,” Shrout said. “Nobody’s going to be a pushover. We’re going to have to go out there and play our game.”

Hoover began the season in February with a couple of tournaments and games against Gardendale, Oak Mountain, Chelsea and Vestavia Hills, all highly competitive teams. In March, the Bucs face Spain Park, Hewitt-Trussville, Thompson and a few more tournaments.

“We’re going to have to play our game and grow and mature,” Shrout said. “If we can play how I know we can and attack during the game, I like our chances.”