Pirates softball team facing state’s best

Brooklyn Barcroft (pictured) is leadoff hitter for the Perrydale High School softball team. The Pirates head into Friday’s doubleheader against Clatskanie with three wins in seven league games. Photo by Lance Masterson.

A young Perrydale softball team has dropped four straight games, with a doubleheader at ninth-ranked Clatskanie scheduled for Friday.

The girls swept Vernonia/Jewell to start the season, but then immediately entered the difficult part of their schedule, with successive series against three of the best Class 2A/1A teams in the state.

The Pirates’ slide includes three losses to seventh-ranked Knappa, and Tuesday’s 21-2 loss to the ninth-ranked Tigers.

On tap for next week is the fifth-ranked Willamina Bulldogs.

“We compete hard, but are overmatched by the better teams in the league,” coach Chris Gubrud said. “We start seven freshmen, one sophomore and a junior.”

Given his team’s youth, Gubrud’s priority is player development.

“We are young, so we should improve as the season progresses,” he said. “Our goal is to compete, no matter who we are playing.”

Sophia Jackson-Roteman and Izzy Arthur lead the Pirates in all offensive categories, Gubrud said, while Brooklyn Barcroft has been solid in centerfield.

“Our girls have great attitudes and will compete no matter who we line up against,” he added.

That gung-ho attitude will come in handy as Willamina is at Perrydale Tuesday, 4:30 p.m. Then the Bulldogs host the Pirates in a Thursday, April 25, doubleheader. First game begins at 3 p.m.

A string of wins could come to the Pirates beginning April 30 when they battle Gaston and Nestucca in back-to-back series.