Seniors dominate the lineup for the Carmichaels Area softball team this year.

All around the field, 12th graders occupy positions with nearly all of them returning from last season. The only hole to fill was a big one left when Cortney Newland graduated last season.

To replace her, the senior-laden team turned to a freshman and the Mikes have not skipped a beat, going 14-1 in Section 2-A to capture the title and earn a playoff spot. They closed the season by scoring in double figures in the last five games. Freshman Kasey Osbourne has put together a solid season pitching in front of an experienced field.

"I knew coming in that there were expectations that were to be met and I hope I met them," Osbourne said.

Mikes coach Dave Briggs knew he had a pitcher on the way this year and was confident she would benefit from being surrounded by experienced players.

"We knew we had one coming up and she is good," Briggs said. "Playing with all those seniors, I think it has helped her tons. She is really composed as a freshman and it's comforting knowing you are going to get good run support most days. The other girls have made her feel comfortable and a part of the team."

With the way Carmichaels has been scoring runs, strong pitching performances were not necessary, but Osbourne still pitched three shutouts and held four other teams to one-run.

The only section loss for the Mikes came against West Greene, 8-3, in the second of three meetings between the teams. West Greene, which finished second in the section, took advantage of seven Mikes errors.

"When you make seven errors, you're not going to beat many teams, especially a team like West Greene," Briggs said.

"We have been pretty consistent with the bats all season, but it comes down to fielding. As long as we field the ball, we are pretty good."

Carmichaels bounced back in the rubber match against the Pioneers despite digging an early 4-0 deficit in the first inning. The Mikes scored two runs in both the first and second innings and came back to win, 8-6.

Eight starters returned from last year's team that got out of the first round of the WPIAL playoffs after first-round exits the previous three seasons. They defeated Fort Cherry, 8-3, before being eliminated in the quarterfinals by Neshannock.

"I definitely think that experience from last year is going to help," Briggs said. "We know what we are going to have to do now. We won our first one last year and we definitely should have won in the second round, too. This year we want to go further."

The only question coming into this season was the pitching situation. It did not take Osbourne long to convince the seniors on the team she was more than capable.

"Courtney was an amazing pitcher for us and we knew it was going to be hard to fill her shoes so quickly," senior third basemen Morgan Pratt said.

"We were a little worried at first, but after the first game Kasey pitched, we knew she had it in the bag."

Many of the seniors on the team can relate to Osbourne as they, too, started as freshmen. Senior Ashley Chernnisky is one of them and she has been playing shortstop this season and leading the team in hitting with an average better than .500.

Pratt, the leadoff hitter, is also a four-year starter and she has moved from center field to second base to third base where she has played the past two seasons.

Senior Taylor Nichols is a four-year starter and made the move from third base to first base. Senior Memry Jordan has also seen her role change during her time at Carmichaels. She went from being a pinch runner as a freshman to the team's starting catcher.

Shayleigh Busti is the lone junior starter on the team. She plays second base and bats third in the lineup. In the outfield seniors Laci Ludrosky in right field and Alyssa Workman in center play alongside sophomore Jade McCann.

Senior Autumn Wozny has served as the team's designated hitter most of the season.

"I think we are very ready for the playoffs," Briggs said. "We have a senior-oriented team and most of them have been in the lineup regularly the last few years and that is a big advantage for us. We are pretty strong hitting one through nine and not a lot of Class A teams can say that."