A culture shift helped Pocono Mountain West softball have its best season in program history

POCONO SUMMIT — This season is the best-ever in the history of Pocono Mountain West softball. And no, that's not an exaggeration. Prior to 2026, the Panthers never had a winning record, with their best season coming coming in 2022, when they won seven games.

But under first-year head coach Trent Cherence, West has turned it around quickly, ending the regular season with 10 wins, the most in program history, and clinching a spot in the District 11 playoffs for the first time ever. "The girls worked really hard this year," Cherence said. "All offseason, they were in 3-5 days a week, and they just put in a lot of work.

So I'm grateful to have the group that I have, and that's the only reason why we got there. " Cherence has been a part of the program for three years, serving as an assistant coach before taking over as head coach. Most of the players have been in the program for multiple years, so what was the difference?

"I think it's the culture we brought," Cherence said. "I brought a little bit of the culture with how I coach and how we do things. We try to make everything perfect.