SYRACUSE — The past two seasons for the Wawasee softball program have been memorable, to say the least.

In 2014 the Lady Warriors shocked many by winning the sectional title then went on to host an unforgettable regional championship in front of a crowd of more than 600 people, ultimately falling in a heart-breaking loss to eventual state champion Leo.

Last season Wawasee returned virtually all of its players from the year before and improved to a 20-6 record, highlighted by the program’s first Northern Lakes Conference title, but the campaign was cut short in the sectional by a determined Fairfield squad.

This year Wawasee once again returns the overwhelming majority of its roster in hopes of capturing even more success.

“We have either won a sectional or conference title the past two seasons. This year the goal is to win both,” stated Kylee Rostochak, a senior captain for Wawasee this season. “We are very capable of accomplishing those goals. So far we’ve been able to keep everyone healthy and that’s not always been the case the past few years. Having this team healthy will be huge for our success.”

Rostochak’s comments practically mirrored those made by her coach, Jared Knipper, in a separate interview.

“Two years ago we made the regional championship, last year we won the NLC. Obviously our goal this year is to do both of those things and go beyond that regional point,” Knipper said. “The girls have a ton of talent. If they play well and stay healthy then it’s definitely in our control and hopefully everything works out our way.”

Knipper and the Warriors field essentially the same team this season that they did for their regional run two years ago. The major difference being the absence of team captain and vocal leader Paige Hlutke, who graduated in 2015 and is now continuing her career at Grace College. The coach has seen his upperclassmen rise to the occasion of filling Hlutke’s shoes and the players know just how big of shoes those are to fill.

“Paige is someone that cannot be replaced as a person or player,” offered Kylee Rostochak, a key senior and captain on this year’s team. “She was a great teammate and captain. We’re still working on filling her spot on the field. The other seniors and I have really stepped up to try and fill that leadership role.”

This year’s team differs from any other that Knipper has dealt with at Wawasee to this point as it boasts four seniors in Rostochak, Christina DeLaFuente, Allissa Flores and Danielle Gunkel, all of which play major roles for the Green and Gold.

“They’ve been here as long as I have, ” began the coach, “this has really been the same team for four years. I’ve talked to our seniors about this being the oldest group of girls that we’ve had. There’s a lot of potential. We’ve reached a lot of great goals and done a lot of great things the past few years. If any year is going to be the year to capitalize on what we’ve built the last couple, this is it.”

In addition to the four seniors, Wawasee brings back a host of names that fans will surely know and that opponents will most likely dread.

A loaded junior class provides the Warriors with Amber Lemberg (back from injury), Meghan Fretz, Madi Wilson, Hannah Haines, Ale Brito and Kayla White. Christy Carson and Faith Swihart highlight just a taste of the newcomers to the roster for Wawasee’s varsity. Fretz led the team with a .447 batting average, she’s one of three players returning that eclipsed .400 at the plate last season (Gunkel, Wilson).

When it comes to the biggest challenges his team might face in terms of opponents, Knipper has not given it much thought.

“I don’t know, I honestly don’t,” Knipper said bluntly. “We go in and we play every game the same way. We coach it the same, keep the same philosophy. The biggest thing is to not make mistakes. Don’t leave our runners stranded, keep our opponent from getting runners. Just, don’t make mistakes. You’re going to win a lot of games doing that.

“It’s one of the things we focus on, one of the things we can control. We lost six games and a couple of those were because we lost focus and didn’t play our best. If we can limit those things, those mistakes, we’ll win games.”

The biggest weakness or soft spot that Knipper feels his team has might not be what other would have pointed out initially.

“The loss of coach Stewart,” Knipper said without a moment’s hesitation. Jace Stewart stepped down from his assistant coaching position to spend more time with his family. “That’s a big one. The girls really rallied around him. He was a morale booster. When games got tough he kept things light when I was freaking out a little bit. That’s the biggest piece of the puzzle, to keep everyone together and happy and playing well. He definitely was a big part of our success the past couple of years.”

Wawasee opens its season at home this Saturday with Westview. First pitch is slated for 1 p.m.

Warsaw Tigers

Key Losses: Karly Jones, Sid Hernandez, Taylor Stiver.

Key Returners: Sarah Shoemaker, Abby Glass, Taylor Sleeth

Key Newcomer: Grace Johnson

Whitko Wildcats

Key Losses: Aly Nicodemus, Maddie Gawthrop.

Key Returners: Hannah Yohe, Haley Yohe, Kennedy Krull, Emily Day, Tori Silveus, Emily Hughes, Whitney Marsh.

Key Newcomers: Ellie Snep, Emmy Duggins.

Triton Trojans

Key Losses: Krystal Sellers, Lillie Berger, Lexee Lemler, Halie Zimmerman, Hannah Jennings, Brycelyn Garbison.

Key Returners: Heather Stichter, Nicole Sechrist, Kayla Kreft, Courtney Jennings, Taytum Hargrave, Megan Berger.

Tippecanoe Valley Vikings

Key Losses: Darian Dotson, Kassidy Shepherd.

Key Returners: Katie Gunter, Amanda Shepherd, Mia Gunnels, Abby Betten, Kayla Scott.

Key Newcomers: Sydney Howard.