A new season begins tonight for Washington Demon softball, and KCII has you covered for the Opening Day matchup with Clear Creek Amana. Washington softball is looking to continue one of the program’s most successful stretches, as a 24-12 record last year gave the Demons back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in over a decade.

Washington’s success has largely been powered by their offense. The Demons were the eighth-highest scoring team in the state last year and were also top 10 in Class 3A in hits and batting average.

All-state infielder Leighton Salazar has been a figurative and literal leader for the lineup, finishing third in the state in total hits last season and posting a .524 batting average and 54 runs scored, both also top 10 in 3A.

A career .500 hitter, the junior lead-off hitter is also a speed merchant, collecting 36 stolen bases last summer to set yet another single-season school record.

Right behind her is senior outfielder Ella Greiner, who did not join Salazar as a two-time all-state selection because of injury in 2024 but still batted .453 and scored 32 runs, and catcher Alyiva Anderson, who was a breakout star as a junior by hitting a career-high .375 with 10 doubles, three home runs and a team-best 43 runs batted in.

Add in another senior leader in pitcher Isabella Salazar, who batted .348 with 37 RBI but also had a career-best 2.67 earned-run average and 100 strikeouts in the circle, and there is a strong veteran core in place for Washington.

Head coach Ben Obermann tells KCII Sports that for his players, both new and returning, being successful again and then some comes down to having the right approach.

“We fell short of a couple goals last year that we felt like we were good enough to achieve in the conference title and getting to a regional final and having a shot at the state tournament,” Obermann says, “but that just fueled us for this year, knowing what we need to do a little bit better [and] focusing a little bit more on the finite details of the game, because the small things lead to big things, and some of the small things ended up costing us last year.”

The Demons are facing a Clear Creek Amana team that has won at least 25 games at the Class 4A level in three of the last four years, and the Clippers have also won three straight games in this series.

You can catch Washington softball open the 2025 season at CCA on 106.1 FM, and you can stream Demon softball all season long at KCIIradio.com and on the KCII1 app. Coverage begins this evening with the Countdown to First Pitch at 6:30.