he and I grew up together through grade and high school. Keystone Oaks' stats have been entered for the 10-2 loss @ Waynesburg Central on 4/24/2023 4:15 PM. I coached Little League against Dan and knew of his coaching abilities. He works his players in practice hard, but his heart is always in the right place. She has been hitting her spots and [wants the ball] all the time. COACHING We were scheduled for our first scrimmage at DuBois Heindl Field against Curwensville and Redbank. She was their ace in 2021 and the Morning Journals Pitcher of the Year with a school record 30 wins and an ERA of 1.35. Former Longtime Redbank Valley Softball Coach John Sayres. I went to watch Clarion-Limestone and Clarion play a game at Clarion County Park one afternoon. He genuinely cares about each individual player that he has coached. Longtime Clarion Area And Freelance Sport Photographer Bri (Nellis) Kirkland Member Of 2011 Team. Clarion Area Softball Coach Dan Shofestall retired recently, closing out a stellar thirty-plus year career that spanned parts of five decades, patrolling the diamonds, including Little League Baseball, Little League All-Stars and for the past fifteen years with the Bobcats. Direct links to the resorts. Dan has been a steady force behind every team. I will also cherish the time he gave to my family! Our hope is to grow it to 18 teams to create 3 different divisions. See top plays & highlights of the best high school sports When I think of Clarion softball, I think of Dan Shofestall. And last but not least, to the players Ive coached in Little League, All Stars and Clarion softball these past five decades. Kettel resigned following his eighth District 2 championship in a 10-year run at Scranton Prep where his . For two months, Keystone looked for a new head softball coach. A native of Throop, Pennsylvania, Ford graduated from Mid Valley High School in 2016, where she was a four-year starter on the basketball and softball teams and was team captain of the softball program since her junior year and earned an Outstanding Teammate Award for the Spartans. "She cares about wins for the team first she cares more about that than her own stats." Thank you for reading! One time, Larry Wiser even had the football team rolling it off for us. As a rgion, it encompassed the southeastern dpartements of Loire, Rhne, Ain, Haute-Savoie, Savoie, Isre, Drme, and Ardche. She's the daughter of former league president, Dom Fasolo. Amazing Era Ends As Clarion Area Softball Coach - Clarion Sports Zone The other thing that impressed me was how deeply he cared about the students on his team. They werent just players to him, they were people he cared about, and continues to care about after they leave school. Book your tickets now! Another time we showed up to a playoff game and the field needed a lot of work, so as the visitors, the coaching staff and I think even some players jumped into action and got that field ready. For the past 20 years or so we coached together we always had nicknames. Kelly graduated and eighteen seasons later, I was still coaching with Dan. Many of those conversations took place on my front porch with Randy Reynolds, Wayne Wilson, Lance Reed, John Murray, Joel German while my wife would cook nachos for us to eat. Open gyms, summer ball, fall ball were all set up so that the girls could succeed. You cant describe a person like Dan in just one word because its impossible. 2010 - B.S. Giants advanced to the winners' bracket semifinal round of the double-elimination CSAC Championships and finished in third placeGraduate senior Shannon Lloyd named to CoSIDA Academic All-District 4 Team as well as All-CSAC First Team Also earning All-CSAC honors were First Team selections freshman Jordan Frye and senior Paige Mokychic, andSecond Team selection freshman Brooke Staple 10 players named to CSAC All-Academic Team. We also had a Home Run Derby. Longtime Karns City Softball Head Coach Mike Stitt. Alison Ritter - Softball Head Coach/Academic Coordinator - Softball Coaches - Keystone College Athletics Keystone College Athletics Main Navigation Menu Quick Links Composite Schedule Live Game Links Staff Directory News Archives Fingertip Facts Social Media Sports Men's Sports Baseball Basketball Cross Country Football Lacrosse Soccer softball coaches. Some were wins some were losses. Admiral Perry Hummell was our chief meteorologist and ground man. Keystone's 2012 National Championship-winning team. Dan went above and beyond the call of a high school softball coach. A native of Throop, Pennsylvania, Ford graduated from Mid Valley High School in 201, Most recently, Ford has been the director of facility operations at Riverfront Sports Complex in Scranton and the head coach for the Riverfront girl's travel softball team in addition to serving as the junior high coach at Mid Valley. I believe that mindset and accountabilityfrom Coach Shofestall helped our team stay focused throughout the early days of the softball season, especially when we were practicing in the gym. Discover your dream home among our modern houses, penthouses and. To see my players pictures and re-read the articles of every Little League, All-Star or Softball game has rekindled many many heartfelt memories again. Getting 1% better every day added up throughout theseason and eventually paid off when we were able to take the field to play for the state championship. Two of my former players (Riley and Quinn) even got married and live in Georgia, last I heard. Longtime Oil City Derrick Sports Editor Ed Brannon. Dan, it is a two-way street. Theres no way we could have done it without you all. Longtime Clarion Little League And Clarion Area Assistant Coach Jeff Smathers And Daughter Tiffany (Smathers) Sturgeon, All-State Player On 2011 Team. Thank you for your many years of coaching and supporting the players. Because of his devotion to the team as well as to them, girls loved playing the sport. As the saying goes, Rome was not built in a day. That set up the showdown at Weaver Park in front of a huge crowd, The game was tied after 6 innings and went into extra innings until the the 8th inning when Clarion walked it off with the win in one of the craziest plays you will ever see. She hit two RBI singles in the first inning to lead, 1-0, and sixth to tie the . Gibson is motivated to make it back to the regional tournament. in 2019-2020. We have girls in different spots that they havent been there before, but our battery with our pitcher and catcher returning and how solid of a year that she had last year and what we can look forward to this year. When the schedule was released it was always a game I looked at to see when we played them. Forty miles northeast of Cleveland lies a quiet village of barely over 2,000 people, LaGrange, Ohio, that's perhaps most famous for producing Dorothy McGuire, a baseball player in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League made famous in the 1992 movie "League of Their Own." Anyway, I could go on and on singing Dans praises, but Im sure anyone whos ever had to great fortune to meet or be around him, already knows that. A native of Throop, Pennsylvania, Ford graduated from Mid Valley High School in 2016, where she was a four-year starter on the basketball and softball teams and was team captain of the softball program since her junior year and earned an Outstanding Teammate Award for the Spartans. Keystone softball: Wildcats hire Gina Gibson as new head coach 8 He told me he would consider it and would want some help. KS Bombers | Top Notch Professional Baseball & Softball Coaches He was often a man of few words but when he spoke it certainly made an impact. Ford was the head coach forthe Impact Panthers from 2018 to 2019. La PLUME, Pa. The Keystone College Department of Athletics has announced that Mariah Ford has been hired as the new head softball coach and begins her duties on June 1, 2022. Dan was never a great athlete and never really played ball himself so he was completely self-taught. Dan Shofestall has not only earned this, he is everything you would want a coach to be on and off the field. Missing Score - Keystone Oaks vs. McGuffey, 10-2 (L) Keystone Oaks @ Waynesburg Central, Spring Keystone Oaks Golden Eagles Varsity Softball Season. He was deeply invested in the well being of his players, is a person of integrity, is authentic in his actions and deeds, was always taking a lead with items that were unseen but never unnoticedsuch as field prep, weekend workouts, relationship building with the athletes and their families or just being a positive influence and a great ambassadorfor the district and the sport of softball. I have many fond memories of Weaver Park. at 1:00 p.m. Keystone softball: First year coach Doug Cooper, Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Keystone softball: First year coach Doug Cooper looks to repeat as state champs, Bay grad R.J. Sunahara of D-II national champ Nova Southeastern enters transfer portal, MLB lefty batting average up; game times down, Big weekend for Truex brothers in NASCAR races at Dover, Browns pick up fifth-year option on Jedrick Wills, Keystone track and field: Ryne Shackelford unofficially breaks state long jump record for second time, Railroads of Lorain County program to take place June 8, Avon Lake football: Clay Broadhurst stays motivated to earn first college offer, Olmsted Falls' Brooke Largent on way to full recovery after life-threatening injury suffered in collision, Browns keep busy after draft signing rookie free agents, 68-year-old Elyria man dies in house fire, Avon Lake football: Derek McCrum's change of heart matches family football pedigree, Lorain's Pawlak Park improvements stalled over potential bidding contract issue, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. Keystone High out of LaGrange, Ohio is one of the most storied high school programs in the country. And thats what sets Dan Shofestall apart and why hell alwaysrank as one of my all-time favorite coaches (regardless of the sport) that Ive had the privilege to meet. Both Alexis and Kaitlyn have a tremendous amount of respect for Coach Dan and the part he has played in helping them to develop into the youngmature ladies they have become.