After winning the conference last season, the DGN girls softball team enters a new era in 2026. The Trojans return with a new head coach and a much younger roster after graduating 10 seniors from last year’s team. With much of last year’s varsity lineup gone, younger players will step into larger roles this spring.
First-year head coach Matthew Dillard, previously a varsity assistant coach, takes over the program, looking to build on last year’s success. Dillard has begun the season by bringing new expectations while building a culture for the program. Junior Viktoria Czech, entering her third year as varsity shortstop, has already noticed the change.
“Coach Dillard is a little bit more strict on the program,” Czech said. “It’s really nice because I feel like we need that with a lot of new girls this year.”
With only four seniors on the roster, many younger players will have opportunities on varsity this season. Senior Ella Bonk, who has played on varsity all four years of her high school career, is stepping into a leadership role with the young team.
“We have a completely different team,” Bonk said. “We’ll have 10 new girls, and it’ll be a very young team.”
With new players in key positions, the Trojans will rely on practice and early games to build chemistry. For returning players like Bonk and Czech, helping younger teammates adjust to the varsity level will be an important part of the team’s success this spring.
“This year I feel more like a leader,” Czech said. “With such a small senior class, I want to help the younger girls and guide them.”
Among the departures from last season was the core of the Trojans’ roster, including a Division I pitcher and several players now competing at the college level.
“We lost probably half of the varsity roster, including a Division I pitcher and a couple of other kids that are playing in college right now,” Dillard said.
Despite those losses, Dillard plans to adapt the team’s approach this season. With fewer strikeout pitchers on the roster, the Trojans will rely more on defense and strategy.
“I’m planning on doing more small-ball tactics,” Dillard said. “So I want to run a little more, get down bunts, and take advantage of defensive mistakes.”
Assistant varsity coach and junior varsity head coach Guadalupe Castellanos believes the program still has strong talent throughout its levels.
“All the way throughout the program, we got a lot of talent,” Castellanos said. “We have a lot of girls that can really play.”
Between new leadership and a young roster, the Trojans will look to grow as the season progresses. Dillard believes the team can still find success despite the changes.
“I think we’re in a good place to change the culture of the team,” Dillard said. “Nothing stands out that will prevent us from being successful this year.”
