A team always would like some experience returning to lean on as well as some new, younger players coming up.

St. James High School softball head coach Brad Purvis looks to have both this fall.

STJ is trying to rebound from a 5-18 overall record from last year, including a 0-6 Four Rivers Conference mark.

The Lady Tigers are to open this season Aug. 27 at Vienna,

Back from that squad Purvis has seven players with varsity starting experience. And among those added to the mix is a group of freshmen who may number around 16.

“It’s a nice mix,” said Purvis, entering his 20th season as Lady Tiger head coach. “This is what you want, to create competition with numbers.”

Players with starting experience back are seniors outfielder Brooke Warren, pitcher Lillian Snelson, outfielder/DP Madison Shields and senior infielder/outfielder/pitcher Raegan Witt; juniors catcher Kirrah Drennan, outfielder Millicent Hartley and outfielder Layla Felan, and sophomores infielder Macy McCurdy and outfielder Allison Shields.

Among the freshmen added are pitcher Lela Teague, infielder Paige Nesbitt, infielder Anna Hughes, corner infielder Aubrey Carroll, outfielder/infielder/DP Emma Meurer, catcher Piper Sandusky and catcher Berlin Barton.

Headlining the veteran/youth mix for St. James is in the pitching circle. St. James has two returning pitchers back from 2025 in starter Snelson as well as Witt to go with the incoming Teague.

Snelson started 12 games last season, finishing with a 3-10 record while fanning 28 batters over 56 innings.

“Snelson, Witt and Teague are probably our top three, and we have a couple of others working on it,” Purvis said. “We will probably rely on finesse, pitch location and moving the ball around. You don’t have to throw hard to be successful. If they can develop decent change-ups, that is a big key.

“We put a lot on Lilly Snelson. We hope she has some help this year. Teague has pretty good velocity. And Raegan has come a long way from last year, working with a pitching coach in the off-season.”

Purvis says the Lady Tiger pitchers will have a strong battery mate. “Drennan is in her second year as a full-time catcher,” he said. “She does a great job; she’s one of those kids who found success with it and took hold. We are looking for her to be one of our leaders of the infield.”

The Lady Tigers are looking for improvement defensively across the board.

“Our strength defensively will be our flexibility and versatility, the ability to move people around,” Purvis said. “I think both the outfield and infield will be better. Some of that is the experience from last year, and some of the freshmen have a lot of experience playing, too. Just knowing the game will be important.”

Some of the top offensive players from last fall return. Drennan had team-high totals of a .382 batting average, 21 hits and 29 RBI while Shields hit .368; Snelson batted .349 with 12 runs scored, three doubles and 10 RBI, and Witt hit .333 with a team-leading 21 runs, four doubles and added 13 RBI and five stolen bases.

“Offensively this year we have a little more speed,” Purvis said. “We may look to play more small-ball this year; we’ll employ that more. But we still have got a little power in the middle of the order. They seem to be hitting the ball a little harder.”

Key players lost to graduation include Elisa Bierman, MacKenzie Carroll, Bailee Jones, Brooke Williams and Addalye Felan.