SOFTBALL
Gulls hoping to compete in tough Cowapa
By Gary Henley
Seaside Signal
The 0-15 records are a
thing of the past for Seaside
softball. The Lady Gulls
can now officially consider
themselves as a “player” in
the Cowapa League.
They’re still working on
climbing over .500 in the
league standings, but with a
three-year starter at pitcher,
some experienced returners
and a large freshmen class
… Seaside softball could
become a regular challeng-
er in the Cowapa.
The Gulls will do it this
year with a new coach, as
Korie Blacker takes over
for Jon Hotchkiss, with
Lorna Brandt serving as the
junior varsity coach.
Blacker, who is from
Virginia but has been in the
area for six years, is Sea-
side’s third head coach in
four years.
“I had an opportunity
to return to coaching, so
I’m excited about it,” said
Blacker, who also went
to high school on the East
Coast. “I taught school in
Virginia for five years and
coached there.”
She finished her Masters
in counseling, and moved
to the North Coast.
Blacker will have a
young varsity team at Sea-
side in 2017.
In addition, “it’s my first
year, so I don’t know too
much about our league. I’ll
be learning as we go.”
The Cowapa
She will quickly find out
that the Cowapa League
is one of the toughest
conferences at the 4A
level.
The top two spots are
generally reserved for
Banks and Scappoose. As-
toria, Seaside, Tillamook
and Valley Catholic are on
their own, and will have
Seaside Softball
COACH: Korie Blacker,
1st year
TEAM RECORD FOR 2106 :
9-15 (4-11 league)
KEY LOSSES: Paige
Ideue, Brittany West,
Whitney Westerholm
KEY RETURNERS: Jetta
Ideue, Jr.
to fight it out for third and
fourth, which should in-
clude RPI rankings that will
be good enough for spots in
the state playoffs.
The Gulls will know
right away where they
stand, as they open the
league season at home vs.
Banks April 11.
The Lady Gulls
Jetta Ideue has
turned her atten-
tion to softball,
her third sport
at Seaside.
GARY HENLEY
SEASIDE SIGNAL
Returner Mica Paranal
(second or third base) is
one of two seniors on the
roster, along with Lucy
Bodner, who is listed on the
pre-season roster as a pos-
sible starter at first, second
or third.
The key returner is still
just a junior, as Jetta Ideue
is back for her third season
as the Seaside starter in the
circle.
Other
juniors
who
saw time with the varsi-
ty last season are Alyssa
Goin (centerfield), Geri-
Ann Klaffke (shortstop/
third base), Sequoia Shand
(1B/2B/SS) and Viola So-
prano (OF/P). Pitcher/out-
fielder Celeste Kerr is an
incoming junior.
The rest are sophomores
(Jessica Angulo-Joli, Bri-
anna Hill, Vanessa Hughes,
Jenna Logan, Kimberly
Mella) and freshmen (Si-
erra Bailey, Ruby Davis,
Candis Kerr, Emma Mey-
er, Sidney Owsley, Hai-
ley Smith and Anastasia
Tarvin).
Seagull Pride • Spring 2017 • Seaside Signal/Cannon Beach Gazette • 5