By Rosie Sculco
The Plattsburgh State softball team is ready for a fresh season with a familiar twist as they build on their past success to chase new victories.
Last year, the Cards ended with an 11-25 overall record and a 3-15 record in conference play.
“Going based off of a tougher season last year, we want to try to bounce back and get back to those numbers we put up in 2023 and do anything we can to get the program back to the successful ways that it once had,” head coach Jessica Miller said.
In the 2023 season, the Cards went 22-12 (11-7), making an appearance in the SUNYAC tournament, ultimately, they were eliminated by Cortland and Oneonta.
While the Cards showed resilience on defense last season, execution on offense remained a challenge.
“Last year offensively, we lacked the consistency piece. So, defensively we did what we had to do. We locked it down. We just couldn’t score the runs we needed when other teams put up,” Miller said.
As they prepare for this season, junior captain Megan Pillus said playing together is one of their top priorities.
“On our team there is a big focus on being a family and one unit. When one person fails, we all fail. We pick each other up and support each other through every challenge we may face,” Pillus wrote in a text.
The Cards graduated five players from the 2024 roster, including outfielder Dolly Garguilo, pitcher/infielder Julia Golino, outfielder Dimitra Mouhteros, infielder Claire Palmer and infielder Kaitlin Smith.
Palmer and Golino both surpassed the 100-hit mark in their career.
The 2025 roster includes 19 players.
The Cardinals brought in six new recruits, including outfielders Lindsay Barnes, Gianna Montes and Mikayla Pappas and infielders Bella Toleman and Meghan Stork.
Seven sophomores returned for Plattsburgh. Catcher Emma Deo, outfielder Michelle DeFina, infielder Sara Isaacs, catcher Alyssa Hemingway, pitcher Cadey Wheat, outfielder Leila Toomey and infielder Alex Whitson.
Four junior Cardinals will take the field this season, including catcher Meghan Cox, infielder/pitcher Megan Pillus (captain), pitcher Morgan Ormerod (captain) and catcher/outfielder Gwen Noll.
Only three seniors return to the diamond: pitcher Carly Gemmett, utility player Mikayla Manalo and pitcher/infielder Sarah Milyko.
Miller enters her first year as head coach after serving as the assistant coach for three seasons. Alongside her as the assistant coach is Brad Marshall, who is anything but new to Plattsburgh.
Marshall’s daughters, Ashley and Brittany, each were student-athletes at Plattsburgh. Ashley earned conference pitcher of the year honors in both 2012 and 2013. Brittany played for both the softball and basketball teams at Plattsburgh from 2012-2015, where she was an all-conference level player for both teams.
Brad Marshall last coached with the team for the 2023 season with Miller.
“We’re very excited to have him back. He is a huge part of our success, from 2023 and what we were able to accomplish then. Our relationship has just continued to move in the right direction,” Miller said. “He is getting the girls prepared and us to be as successful as we can be this year,”
The Cards are scheduled to play 38 regular season games, including 20 non-conference and 18 conference matchups.
Ten of those non-conference games will be played in Clermont, Florida, starting March 16.
“It is the first time we get to play a game with each other this season and see what we can do as a team,” Pillus said. “Florida is just a week long sleepover with your best friends. It is a great time to build a lot of the team chemistry that carries us through the rest of the season,”
With a balanced mix of upperclassmen and underclassmen, chemistry is something that the team will use as its strength this year.
“We are always together. It’s just like a family. We go to each other for everything, no matter the age. Upperclassmen go to underclassmen for things, and vice versa. So it’s really great to have that close bond with every age,” Ormerod said.
Additionally, Miller, having had similar experiences as the players, brings an understanding that strengthens the team’s bond.
Miller graduated from SUNY Cortland in 2021, where she played four seasons for the Red Dragon Softball team winning the SUNYAC championship in 2019 of her senior season.
After playing 10 games in Florida, the Cards will hit the field again on April 2 in a home opener double header against VTSU Castleton.
The team is focused on preaching game like situations in practice.
“We’ve definitely tried to throw all the situations out there, challenging them regularly and making them think all the time so when you play, you can trust that you know what you’re doing,” Miller said.
Like many other teams at Plattsburgh, the ultimate goal is to win the SUNYAC championship.
The last time Plattsburgh won a SUNYAC title was in 2012 when the team made an NCAA tournament appearance as well as a College World Series appearance.
“We have started from day one with a championship mindset, knowing that we have the skills and talent to take it all the way this year,” Pillus wrote. “We are taking it series by series trying to build to our end goal one win at a time.”
