The Greenwood High School girls softball program has enjoyed great support and success over the past decade and beyond under former head coach Ronnie Sockey and now Donald Hart, starting his third season at the helm. Hart has 22 young ladies on his team roster, including a balanced mix of five seniors, five juniors, five sophomores, and seven freshmen. That lineup has an excellent combination of senior leadership and youthful talent for this spring and seasons yet to come.
In late February the GHS ladies held their annual navy/white intersquad game to kick off their preseason before defeating Fort Smith Northside in a scripted benefit game last week. They then opened the regular season this past Monday with a come-from-behind road win over non-conference foe Gravette, a solid 4A program. They returned to Northwest Arkansas on Thursday, winning at Gentry before losing at Fayetteville on Friday. See the details in a related article.
Coach Hart recently talked with this writer about his team’s players and their prospects for the 2025 season after leading the last two GHS squads to the state playoffs. The 2023 team reached the state semifinals, and the 2024 Lady Bulldogs lost in the quarterfinals. Reaching the playoffs again is certainly possible, given the program’s tradition and talent on this year’s squad, but the competition has gotten tougher with the addition of Farmington, a powerful program moving up from Class 4A this season.
Besides Greenwood and Farmington, the other 5A West schools include Russellville, Van Buren, Alma, Siloam Springs, Harrison, and Mountain Home. Coach Hart has put together a schedule of about 30 games, including a return to the DMAC tournament in Hope, Arkansas, just prior to spring break on March 21-22. There will be 14 conference games, all of them home-and-home contests for the first time in years. Those games will be scattered throughout the spring rather than played on back-to-back days like the conference baseball schedule.
This year’s seniors include Emmy Burton, Rylee Floyd, Saylor Hart, Piper Pitts, and Brilea Rofkahr, most of them starters. The junior class includes Lakyn Dawson, Victoria Griffith, Alyssa Lovell, Miley Schwartz, and Daisy Parker. Coach Hart’s sophomores are Emily Creason, Emily Dagget, Taelyn Martin, Izzy Thomas, and Annie Been. The freshmen class includes Kynleigh Palmer, Isabella Meyers, Sienna Wells, Maylee Bethel, Jordyn Floyd, Makayla Bachert, and Ava Cranor.
With a young roster, Coach Hart is looking for his seniors to lead by example and do most of the heavy lifting early in the season. “[Our roster is] pretty balanced, but the five seniors I’ve got will all be contributors who played last year. They bring great leadership, and I look forward to them leading this group [of players].” He then talked about his seniors.
“Emmy Burton just committed to Carl Albert State College and she started for us in right field last year and hit .314. She’ll play left field for us this year. She’s a great kid and great teammate and we look for her to do some good things this year. Rylee Floyd was an all-conference second baseman for us last year. She hit .411 and has a super high IQ. She’s also a great kid and great teammate and I look for her to have [another] successful year.”
The head coach next talked about his daughter Saylor. “She also signed with Carl Albert in the fall, and she was a .300 hitter last year. She’s really been working on her hitting, and I expect her to have a strong year as well. I haven’t seen Piper [Pitts] yet, but I know she will be in the mix when she gets back [from basketball] and gets acclimated. She hit .442 for us last year. She’s a lefty and very athletic and can play infield or outfield. When she gets back, she will be pushing to be in the lineup somewhere.
“Brilea Rofkahr signed with the University of the Ozarks at Clarksville last fall. She was all-conference for us last year and hit .416. She and Rylee Floyd played all summer together on the same travel team and they really grew and matured. Brilea has worked tremendously on her bat. She was a good contact hitter last year, but she’s added some power, and I think she’s going to have a special season,” said Hart.
Moving on to his talented junior class, the coach said, “Laykn Dawson is committed to Henderson State. She got limited playing time last year but has really worked on her game. She’s been starting at first base. She provides power and has really worked on her defense. I look for her to [hold down] the four spot in our lineup. Victoria Griffith didn’t get varsity time last year, but she’s another one of those who has worked hard in the offseason. She’s been starting in right field for us and has pop in her bat. She’s going to have a good season for us.
“Alyssa Lovell pitched 22 innings of varsity ball last year and pitched every meaningful JV game inning we had. She is our #1 [pitcher] this year. Miley Schwartz hasn’t gotten any varsity time, but she’s a great teammate. She will probably pinch hit or pinch run for us, but she can also pitch if we need her. Daisy Parker was an all-conference left fielder last year, but she’s been moved to the infield this season. She hit .356 last year and has speed and power and I think she’s going to have a good season.”
Regarding his younger players, Hart began with sophomore catcher Emily Creason. “She caught every inning we had last year. She worked really hard [on her hitting] and will bat leadoff for us this year. She has power and speed and can play any position where we might need her other than pitcher. One other sophomore pushing for playing time is Annie Been in the outfield. Her bat is pretty solid and I look for her to get some varsity playing time this year.
“[Freshman] Bella Meyers is a catcher and infielder,” the coach continued. “She’s played at a high level and is very mature. She started at DP [designated player] the first two games and got some time at third base against Gravette. She will also split time with Emily Creason behind the plate to give her a break. But her bat is very good, and I look for her to have a good freshman year.”
The coach also mentioned a pair of freshmen pitchers that have already seen significant action this season. “Sienna Wells is the hardest thrower we’ve got. I look for her to be our late-inning closer. She came in against Gravette and struck out two and got a ground ball. I think she’ll be a good closer for us. Then I have a middle reliver, Makayla Bachert, another good freshman. She pitched two innings [against Gravette] and brings a little spin to [the ball]. I think she will be good for us out of the pen.”
When asked, the coach went through his defensive lineup, beginning with Alyssa Lovell on the mound and Emily Creason behind the dish. At first base will be Lakyn Dawson with Rylee Floyd at second base. Third base will be Daisy Parker with Brilea Rofkahr at shortstop. From left to right in the outfield will be Emmy Burton, Saylor Hart, and Victoria Griffith.
“There are some positions where players are still competing,” said the coach. “So the lineup will be liquid for a little while. It’s not set in stone other than my two middle infielders [Floyd and Rofkahr], but everything else could change from time to time depending on how people are playing.”
Asked to talk more about his hurlers, Hart revealed that the 5A West has now gone to home-and-home league series this season, which makes it much easier on each team’s pitching staff, especially their #1 hurler. “I can pitch by committee if I want to,” said the coach. “I’ve actually got about seven pitchers, but Alyssa Lovell will be in the circle for conference games. I’ve got four I’d be willing to put in a game right now. Getting freshmen who can contribute on the high school level is pretty big. We work hard in the fall trying to make sure we develop pitchers. They’ve put in a tremendous amount of work, and they play all summer. They’ve just been focused on the process of getting better.
“Alyssa’s got good velocity and a good curve ball and changeup and she hits her spots fairly well. She’s still a contact pitcher and won’t overpower people, but we have a good enough defense to back her up. Makayla is my spin pitcher. She has a drop ball, curve ball, and a nasty changeup, all of which make her fastball seem faster. She’s 5’10” with a lot of room to grow. I look for her to be six feet by the time she’s a senior. She’s not near the top of her game [yet], but her spin gives a lot of teams trouble. Sienna throws in the low 60s. She’s 5’7” but is also one who I will use as a courtesy runner. She’s lightning fast. She’s mostly fastball/changeup, but she’s working on a curveball. I look for her to get some spot starts in non-conference play. Teams are really going to have to make some adjustments in seven innings to be able to time us up.”
Hart’s early impressions of his team have been good. “This group has been locked in since we got back from Christmas break. They’ve embraced the process and I’m really proud of them. We came out ready to go against Northside and looked really good. But we knew Gravette would be tougher competition. They went to their [state] final four last year, and they smacked us in the mouth with five runs in the first inning. But we responded and won that game 10-9. They showed a lot of grit. While we’re young, we have some [good] seniors and upperclassmen, but we have some young ones that are also contributing. I just like their attitude and effort. They’re great teammates and work hard 1-22. I think it’s going to be a pretty special year.”
Asked about the strengths of his 2025 squad compared to his previous two GHS teams, Coach Hart said, “This is the most power we’ve had in our lineup, but we also have a ton of speed. We can play small ball if we need too. I look to be aggressive on the bases this year. But we’ve got power at leadoff, in the two-hole, three-hole, four-hole, and down in the lineup we’ve got one or two girls who can hit it out. They can all bunt [too] and they are all athletic and fast. I think we’ve got all facets of the game covered offensively. I think we’ll be able to hit with other teams, but we can manufacture runs too if needed.”
Finally, the coach talked about the challenge of playing in the 5A West, especially with the addition of reigning 4A champion Farmington. “I heard they lost several [players], but they are one of those teams that reload, not rebuild. Van Buren lost a catcher and shortstop but has everyone else back. Siloam Springs’ top pitcher returns and has improved. I think it’s probably going to be between us, Farmington, and Van Buren, with Mountain Home and Siloam Springs possibly in there somewhere.
“The 5A is loaded,” admitted Hart, referring to the classification practically owned by the Sheridan Lady Yellowjackets [5A South] in recent years. “There are probably six or seven teams who could make it to the state finals. The 5A Central is really loaded up with Benton, Greenbrier, Maumelle, Beebe, Vilonia, and Sylvan Hills has improved. But it’s Sheridan’s to lose. It’s going to be tough, but hopefully we can take care of business and play with anybody. We’ve got a tough schedule, and we hope to be battle tested by the time we get to the state tournament.”