While the start of the Colonial League softball season is still months away, Salisbury didn't wait long in choosing it's next head coach.

Ken Choquette, a Salisbury native and former assistant coach at Central Catholic High School, was recently hired to replace former head coach Brian Covely.

He'll take over a Falcon team went 1-15 in the Colonial League last year and will look to turn around a program that hasn't endured much success in recent years. The Falcons won four league games in 2012, after winning just one in each of the two previous seasons.

"I've been living in Salisbury since 1992, so I'm born and raised here," Choquette said. "I'm a Salisbury guy, and I would love to be able to help the district out.

"With Salisbury not having a great track record in the past, I'm excited to come in and try to see what I can do to advance the program."

Prior to being the assistant coach at Central Catholic, Choquette was the softball coach for Hamilton Park, which began his softball coaching career nearly eight years ago. In fact, it was during that first season in which he started coaching a number of the current Falcon players.

"I restarted the program up at Hamilton Park eight years ago," Choquette said. "A lot of these girls were like the first girls that started that program, and I brought all of them up to the high school ranks. It's really cool coming back again as they're seniors in high school. I'm kind of coming full circle with these players.

"That's one of my most exciting aspects of this year. To be able to finish out their high school career and try to make an influence on them and have a more successful year for them."

When it comes to his coaching philosophy, Choquette believes in instilling two important aspects into the minds of his players: team unity and sticking to the fundamentals.

"Especially when you have a talented program, the girls must play as a unit," Choquette said. "They must be there to support each other no matter what is happening, good or bad.

"If you go to any college Division I level program, those girls are doing drills and the basics every single day [and] every single practice because it's off of memory and it's technique."

While Choquette hasn't had much time with his team just yet, the program is still enduring a makeover at a number of spots, both on the high school team and in the lower ranks.

"We're in the process of looking for a middle school coach, a JV coach, and a pitching coach," Choquette said. "So we basically have to get all of those positions filled. It also give me an opportunity to get everybody on the same page, so when I have these kids come up the ranks through middle school and JV, and they hit the varsity level, I don't have to reteach all the basics."

In his first time as a head coach at the high school ranks, Choquette is looking forward to the challenge that lies ahead.

While the Falcons endured a tough season in terms of their overall record, the team possesses a number of talented players, and came up on the short end of the stick in a few even games last year. The Falcons lost six games by three runs or less last season.