After South Effingham saw their season end in the first round of the Class AAAAA playoffs, the Lady Mustangs hope to go deeper into the postseason in 2016.
        Last year, the Lady Mustangs were young – composed of 11 freshmen, three sophomores, three juniors and only one senior. After returning to the 2016 season losing only one senior, head coach Chuck Smith is worried less about rebuilding and more about moving forward with his team.
        “We were good last year, but we were just young,” Smith said. “Now they’re a little more mature and we have a good core team. I expect big things this season.”
        Now in the second year of a major rebuilding phase since losing six seniors in 2014, Smith knows that his young players are the future of the team. Although he is confident that his team will be top-notch this season, he seems more focused on creating a group of girls that will work well together in the long run, since 66 percent of his players are still sophomores.
        “I expect us to really grow as a team. That’s my big thing,” Smith said. “We’re focusing on bonding together and gaining the respect and trust of our teammates. If we do that, we’ll be alright.”
        Based on their August 8 game against Jenkins County, the Lady Mustangs seem to be in good shape offensively. South Effingham notched 16 hits to beat the Warriors 15-0 in a three inning decision.
        The win cannot be attributed to any one player as it was a team effort – a mixture of good pitching, hitting and defense, a concept Smith has been pushing this season.
        Smith said he sees this team differently than he traditionally views his teams.
        “In the past, I knew what my lineup was going to be. It was real easy – just put them out there with maybe a change here and there. But this year I have a really competitive team,” Smith said. “It’s a different style team ... They all have their pieces, and they’re all working well.”
        However, with a young team, the three returning seniors – Brianna Lawson, Chloe Horne and Logan Edenfield – will be in the spotlight and will be expected to lead the still young team.
        New region alignments for the 2016 season shake up the schedule for the Lady Mustangs, calling for the team to schedule more non-region teams than it normally would.
        South Effingham moves from region three to region 2-AAAAA for the 2016 season. The region is composed of only four other teams – New Hampstead, Statesboro, Ware County and Wayne County. South Effingham will play each team two times during the regular season.
        Non-region matchups include some familiar faces like long-time region-mates Effingham and Richmond Hill, both of whom are now in region 2-AAAAAA. Additionally, the Lady Mustangs will take on two more AAAAAA schools, Grovetown and Greenbriar, and two AAAAAAA schools, Camden County and Parkview.
        “We have a very tough schedule. We always do,” Smith said. “But it doesn’t matter who you play, one A through 10 A, you just have to prepare yourself. You do that and everything will be fine.”
        South Effingham begins region play on Thursday against Wayne County at South Effingham High School. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.

South Effingham schedule

Aug. 18, 6 p.m.       Wayne County       Home
Aug. 23, 6 p.m.       Statesboro            Statesboro
Aug. 24, 6 p.m.       Camden County     Kingsland
Aug. 30, 5 p.m.       New Hampstead    Savannah
Sept. 1, 6 p.m.       Ware County         Home
Sept. 7, 6 p.m.       Richmond Hill        Rich. Hill
Sept. 8, 5 p.m.       Wayne County       Jesup
Sept. 13, 6 p.m.      Statesboro           Home
Sept. 15, 6 p.m.      Effingham Co.       Rebel Field
Sept. 17, 9 a.m.      Brookwood Tourn.  Lilburn
Sept. 20, 6 p.m.      New Hampstead    Home
Sept. 22, 4:30 p.m.  Ware County        Waycross