MLHS softball coach excited for deep talent in 2025
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year, 7 months AGO
Mavericks pitcher Paige Richardson prepares to fire one off at Moses Lake High School softball practice Friday. Richardson was named league MVP last year and fully intends to make her senior year stand out.
JOEL MARTIN/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
The Moses Lake High School Mavericks will be hitting the softball diamond again soon. Coaches say the team is looking solid with a lot of talent.
Eryn Eckenberg, right, makes contact with the ball while catcher Hayden Morris holds up her glove in vain at a Moses Lake High School softball practice Friday.
Caitlin Decubber, right, is safe at home despite the best efforts of first baseman Jayylinn Villareal.
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | March 12, 2025 3:15 AM
MOSES LAKE — Mavericks head softball coach Mike Hofheins has a problem other coaches would love to have.
“We have a lot of girls that are super versatile and can play multiple positions,” Hofheins said Friday. “We're trying to figure out where the puzzle pieces fit to make our team the best, because so many girls can play two and three and four positions. (They’re) probably more versatile than I've ever had.”
The Mavericks graduated seven seniors last year, Hofheins said, but because youth softball is so big in Moses Lake, even the newer girls are coming in with a lot of experience.
The Mavs’ not-so-secret weapon is Paige Richardson, who pitched her way to being named league MVP last year. Now a senior, Richardson has been pitching for Moses Lake High School all through her high school years.
“She's just an outstanding pitcher, outstanding competitor, outstanding leader, and we're going to ride that horse as long as we can ride it,” Hofheins said. “She’s a crafty pitcher and since her freshman year, she’s really gained confidence and got a little swagger to her when she’s in the circle and all those things as she’s matured. That’s been really fun to watch.”
Richardson echoed Hofheins’ thoughts on the challenge of too many versatile players.
“I think it’s just trying to fill positions,” she said.
Senior Erin Eckenberg agreed.
“(It’s) seeing new faces and having to fill new spots that we didn’t have last year, seeing where everyone fits in the puzzle,” she said.
Turning those new players into a cohesive team is going to take a little time, senior Jennika Balderas said.
“We have the skill level,” Balderas said. “We just need some teamwork and learning how to work together … I wouldn’t say it’s a challenge, but it takes time learning how all our plays fit together.”
Teamwork is an issue for some teams where conflicts and egos can get in the way, but Hofheins said he’s seen none of that.
“They've been really awesome,” he said. “Our practices have been super spirited. I sent an email last night to the kids and the parents that said, this is the best first week of practice I can remember. We've had great weather, the attitudes, the hustle, it’s just been great.”
Moses Lake High School softball schedule
March 13 at Walla Walla High School, 5 p.m.
March 14 at Mt. Spokane High School, 4 p.m.
March 26 vs. Richland High School, 4 p.m.
March 28 at Sunnyside High School, 3 p.m./4:30 p.m.
March 31 at Southridge High School, 4 p.m.
April 4 vs. Eisenhower High School, 3:30 p.m./5 p.m.
April 8 vs. Jackson High School – Varsity, 11 a.m.
April 17 at Wenatchee High School, 4 p.m./6 p.m.
April 21 vs. Cheney High School, 4 p.m.
April 22 at Mount Si High School, 5 p.m.
April 25 vs. AC Davis High School, 3:30 p.m./5 p.m.
April 29 vs. Hanford High School – Varsity, 5 p.m.
May 2 at West Valley High School (Yakima), 4 p.m./6 p.m.
May 5 vs. Othello High School, 5 p.m.
May 9 vs. Eastmont High School, 3:30 p.m./5 p.m.
The Moses Lake High School Mavericks will be hitting the softball diamond again soon. Coaches say the team is looking solid with a lot of talent.
Eryn Eckenberg, right, makes contact with the ball while catcher Hayden Morris holds up her glove in vain at a Moses Lake High School softball practice Friday.
Caitlin Decubber, right, is safe at home despite the best efforts of first baseman Jayylinn Villareal.ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Endless battle
Noxious Weed Control Board works to keep invasive plants under control
MOSES LAKE — Some of the nastiest plants in Grant County were the topic of a class led by Jay Johnson, a consultant with the Grant County Noxious Weed Control Board, Tuesday. The Noxious Weed Control Board, as its name would suggest, is tasked with keeping weeds under control in Grant County. That’s not a small job; the board’s website lists 129 species of noxious weeds that are found around Grant County. A noxious weed is defined as an invasive, non-native plant that threatens agricultural crops, local ecosystems or fish and wildlife habitat, according to the Noxious Weed Control Board. Washington state law requires that these weeds be identified and their spread kept to a minimum, if not completely eradicated. “We’re one of those agencies a lot of people don’t really understand,” Johnson said. “We’re a county office and … our funding is tax-based assessment. When you get your tax bill and you look down at all the expenses that you pay for, there we are.”
BASIN EVENTS: Oct. 16-24
COLUMBIA BASIN — Whether you feel like shopping, crafting, learning or seeing a show, there’s something happening for you this week in the Basin. Oct. 16 ‘My Family (Mi Familia)’ screening Spanning three generations, “My Family (Mi Familia)” is a heartfelt drama that follows the Sánchez family as they build their lives in East Los Angeles. Through love, hardship, triumph, and sacrifice, the film explores the immigrant experience, the strength of family bonds, and the traditions that connect one generation to the next. Lowrider show and taco truck before the screening. Sponsored by Columbia Basin Allied Arts, EDUBS C/S and the Moses Lake Creative District. $12 per person. Doors open at 6 p.m., film begins at 7 p.m. at the Moses Lake Civic Center Auditorium, 401 S. Balsam St. Tickets and info: www.cba-arts.org.
Moses Lake author encourages women to look beyond church culture norms
MOSES LAKE — A Moses Lake author’s book, “A Christian Woman Striving to Live Her Faith in a Man-Controlled World,” takes aim at the role to which many churches relegate the female half of their congregations. “It’s to encourage women in the faith,” Linda Curran said. “A lot of churches say, ‘Teach Sunday school, do this, do that, but don’t (evangelize.)’" In her book, Curran recounts a time when she moved to a new community and joined a church there. She was surprised to learn that, as a new female member, she had been automatically assigned church cleaning duties. When she questioned it, she wrote, she was met with condescension and her objections were brushed aside. In other churches, she said, women who were capable of teaching were relegated to “women’s ministry.”