Warlassies swing into action to open season
Owen softball emphasizes energy and effort under new leadership
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
March 11, 2026
There are many unknowable factors that can determine the outcome of a practice, game or season in the sport of softball. The difference between victory and defeat is often decided in otherwise mundane moments.
While the expectations for reigning Western Highlands Conference champion Owen are lofty, as the team with a combined record of 37-7 in the previous two seasons enters the 2026 campaign, first-year head coach Jeff Grier has a simple message for his talented roster: “control what we can control.”
The Warlassies posted a 12-0 conference mark in 2025, before ending the season in the third round of the playoffs for the second consecutive year. The school’s athletic program looked internally to find new leadership for the softball team, which has surged to prominence in recent years. Grier, who teaches marketing and sports marketing at Owen, while serving as the offensive coordinator of the Warhorse football team, is tasked with harnessing that momentum.
While the new coach has been busy re-establishing a junior varsity program and building the Warlassies’ roster to include around 20 players, none of that is the concern of the members of his previously successful varsity team.
“This is their program,” he said. “We’re here to guide them and help them down the path, but we really want them to take ownership. We’re just trying to continue building on a program that has been successful, both on and off the field.”
Filling the shoes of his predecessor, Pete Ledford, will not be an easy task, according to Grier, who is joined on staff by assistant coach Emily Burriss.
“Pete did a great job laying the foundation of this program and getting it to where it is,” Grier said. “We just want to step in and hit the ground running.”
The Warlassies opened the season with victories in four of their first five games, including a 10-0 win at home, March 10, against Polk. While the recipe has changed slightly, with new pitchers in sophomore Kylie Gurekey, who registered 4 appearances in the circle last season, and junior University of South Carolina commit Mia Roland, the results have been promising.
Owen outdueled North Henderson, 5-4, to start the season, before falling to Reynolds in its home opener. The team, led by Roland, senior captain Easton Whitson, junior Payten Brockman and sophomores Gurekey and Cadyn Pressley, the offense has produced 38 runs during the team’s current three-game winning streak.
“When we first took over the program, they all bought into the direction we want to go and what we want to do within a week,” Grier said. “This is a great group that’s well-coached and our leaders, like Easton and Mia, have done an amazing job.”
The emphasis under Grier and Burriss has been on viewing energy and effort as controlled variables.
“Those are two things you can always control,” the coach said. “Also, we want to do ordinary things extraordinarily, because that’s the difference between good and great teams.”
Following discussions with the players, Grier, who has coached football for over a decade and softball for eight, established measurable benchmarks that allow the team to build upon previous success.
“We haven’t looked much at wins and losses, but instead we’ve looked at things like on base percentage and other performance measures,” he said. “Our goal is to take that next step, so if we can address specific things, that will help get us there.”
Applying consistent pressure to opposing pitchers and defenses is a key piece of that strategy, he added.
“We want our team batting average to be above .300, because we want runners on base,” Grier said. “We’re trying to get our on base percentage to above .500, because if we’re making pitchers throw pitches, we’re doing our job. If we can limit ourselves to less than 2 errors per game, that’s winning softball. I feel like we’re starting to our stride with those things.”
Eight hitters on the Owen roster have combined for 40 runs batted in through the first five games of the season, while the team is batting a collective .346, with an OBP of .466. Although the Warlassies have amassed 17 errors in that span, Gureckey and Roland have combined to strike out 36 hitters in a combined 29 innings in the pitching circle.
Owen will head to Polk County at 4:30 p.m., Friday, March 13, for a rematch against the Wolverines, before returning home at 6 p.m., Tuesday, March 17, to host Avery.
“We have a very resilient and gritty team with players who are very coachable,” Grier said. “We’re just focused on helping them get to where they want to go.”
Photos of the Warlassies’ 10-0 victory over Polk can be viewed in the gallery at the top of the page.