May 28, 2015 3 min read

If the situation surrounding this year’s version of the Pennsylvania Rebellion softball team seems a lot like last year, well that’s because it is.

The team begins its second season in the National Pro Fastpitch league with a first-year manager, just like last year, and a first-time NPF assistant coach, just like last year.

The team is heavily reliant on the performance of its selections in this year’s NPF draft, just like it was last year.

The Rebellion will patiently wait for some key players to arrive and fill some holes in the roster, just like they did last year.

There is one difference.

This year’s team will be a far less experienced team with the losses of veteran players such as pitcher Sarah Pauly and infielders Lauren Lappin and Jenn Salling.

That’s not a good thing.

So it’s hard to see the Rebellion improving much on last year’s 9-39 regular-season record – 9-41 if you include getting swept in the best-of-3 playoff series with the defending champion USSSA Pride.

The season gets under way with an unusual three-team, five-game get together over the weekend. The Rebellion play the Chicago Bandits tonight. First pitch is 7:05 p.m. at Consol Energy Park. Chicago and Akron each play one game with the Rebellion Saturday and Sunday.

With the Rebellion short-handed, going 0-5 is not out of the question.

Granted, that is a pretty dim view of the team’s prospects, but there are some positives.

• The Rebellion probably will not have the worst record in the five-team league. That should belong to the Dallas Charge, the league’s newest member that was added this season.

• In Craig Montvidas, the Rebellion have an experienced first-year coach at one of the higher levels of softball. He understands what it takes to win in this league because as manager of the Dutch National Team, he’s seen and coached against that type of competition. Last year’s manager, California University’s Rick Bertagnolli, did not have that experience.

• While the draft is so unpredictable, Montvidas seemed to understand that games are won with pitching and speed. The Rebellion, far and away the slowest team in the NPF last year, drafted for that need. Miranda Kramer, the team’s first pick, is a fireballing left-hander from Western Kentucky and the remaining position picks all have one thing in common: speed.

• Dallas Escobedo is one year older, one year wiser, one year more experienced. The 6-1 right-handed power pitcher came into camp in great shape. The Rebellion need her to be effective to pair with Kramer to give the staff a strong 1-2 punch.

There are some other interesting aspects to this team, including the signing of two players from Japan. Yuri Masuyama and Haruna Sakamoto are infielders who have extensive experience in the Japanese leagues. How that translates in the NPF will be interesting to watch.

Building a competitive team is a one-block-at-a-time process. The Rebellion are on the right track but are still a couple drafts away from being a consistent winner in the league.

Look for no more than 14 wins this season.

Assistant sports editor Joe Tuscano can be reached at jtuscano@observer-reporter.com.