After finishing one game away from the state tournament last year, the Lady Bulldogs are ready to compete this year.

The King’s Fork softball team is excited for the chance at a new season. Last year, the Lady Bulldogs finished two games above .500. They advanced to the regional tournament, where they defeated Smithfield High School but then lost to Powhatan High School in the regional semifinals that ended their season.

King’s Fork returns one senior from last season, Madison Froemel. The senior was the first All-State softball selection in school history and will be looked upon to help lead the team this season. They also returned standout pitcher Cali Hinnant. Hinnant was an All-Conference pitcher and will take another step in her sophomore year. Lauryn Maher, Isabella Gay and Baxley Lockhart will all be expected to contribute to King’s Fork this season as well.

“I think we are going to be competitive as heck this season,” King’s Fork coach Richard Froemel said. “They believe in each other, and a lot of things we did last season were a big boost for us. That last game left a bad taste in our mouth, and we have used that to motivate us for this season.”

“We are a young team, with me being the only senior this year,” Madison Froemel said. “We lost some key players, and those will be some big shoes to fill, but I know our girls will do more than fine. We are always known as the underdog, and this year won’t be any different from any other year. We are going to have to prove people wrong.”

The Lady Bulldogs will return back to the district, as will all Suffolk public schools. They will host Hickory High School for the first game, and that will be a tough test for King’s Fork, but the Lady Bulldogs are looking forward to it. Froemel believes that the key for his team this season is to score more runs because of the talent they lost from last season.

Hickory will visit King’s Fork at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.