As the pre-season approaches, excitement is building in the small towns of Garden Plain and Andale, Kansas, where the high school softball team is gearing up for another thrilling season. Both communities are known for their strong support of local sports, and this year is no exception.
The Andale / Garden Plain team suffered a tough loss to Wamego (0-5) in the 4A state championship last season. Sophomore Sophia May reflected on that game, “The biggest challenge was facing Wamego’s pitcher who is going D1.” Peyton Hardenburger is the pitcher May is referring to. Hardenburger will be on the mound again this season as a senior, and is signed to play for Tennessee after high school.
A second place finish is not going to stop Andale / GP this season. They are coming back big and better than ever. Head Coach Erin Carney is looking forward to this season and said, “I’m excited to see who returns this season and continue building on the progress we made last year. We had an incredible group of girls last season, and I truly enjoyed coaching them. I’m looking forward to strengthening those relationships and seeing what we can accomplish together this year.”
Carney, in her second year as head coach, is leading the way. The girls have a big change in the way things are trained during season. May praised Carney’s leadership saying, “Coach Carney helped everyone regardless of what team they were on.”
On January 14 the girls started conditioning, and both schools condition one day a week up until February 18. Both of the schools arrive at 6:50 a.m. and train until 7:30. Coach Carney pushes the team to be the best version of themselves. Carney brings a fresh energy and leadership to the two communities. With a passion for the game and a deep commitment to student-athletes, Carney hopes to continue to impact the team. Carney said she chose to become a coach because, “I decided to become a teacher and coach because of the significant influence my high school PE teacher and coach, Doris Hein, had on me. She inspired me to give back to the community and the coaches who dedicated so much time and effort to helping me, which ultimately gave me the chance to play at a higher level. I truly enjoy building relationships with my students and athletes, and I hope to have a positive impact on their lives, letting them know that I genuinely care about them.”
Carney’s background in coaching, combined with her understanding of the importance of teamwork, discipline, and development, makes her a great fit for the Renwick program. Carney is focused on building a strong foundation for success, building a positive team culture, and guiding her athletes to reach their full potential both on and off the field. The towns of Garden Plain and Andale are excited to see what Carney’s leadership will continue to bring to the team in the seasons ahead.
Going into this new season the girls are going to work harder than they ever have. With the upset of getting second in state last season the girls are going to use that to their advantage to work harder and to push themselves. One way May believes the team will get better is by, “Putting in all our effort at every practice and game.”
One of the good things going into this season is that the team only graduated one senior so they will still have most of their key players. Some fellow key players from last season are Miley McKim who batted .408 on the season, Jayna Lies who hit .323, and Elsie Johnson was also hitting .337. Johnson, a junior pitcher from Garden Plain said, “I feel like last season we meshed really well and all had a strong motivation to improve as a team.” These returners helped tremendously in last season and are definitely girls to be looking out for this season.
Andale / Garden Plain is not going to be easy to go up against this season and will definitely be pushing hard to win state this year. The team will be training every Tuesday and Thursday for conditioning. The girls are not taking the loss in state lightly and will be using that as a reason to push and strive for perfection. Last season the team ended with a 17-9 record, and was ranked no. 8 going into state and ended in second place. As the Garden Plain and Andale softball teams head into the 2025 season, there’s a sense of anticipation and excitement surrounding the team.
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John Bloomquist
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