2009 Pre-Season Softball Notes

Senior C Kayla Sears leads the return of one of the state's most powerful batting lineups at AUGUSTA HIGH. In the heart of an order which hit a school record 20 homeruns last spring, Sears batted in 30 runs and hit 7 doubles, 4 triples and 5 homeruns. She had only 2 errors playing behind the plate for the Orioles, which are expected to contend for the Class 4A state title. - Senior 3B Cody Downs led the team in batting average (.455) and on-base percentage (.508) last season, scoring 21 runs and batting in 25. - Junior 1B Caitlin Ray, Augusta's catcher in waiting, hit 5 homeruns and batted in 22 runs. - Senior SS Taylor Reichard hit 3 homeruns, stole 10 bases and committed only 1 error. - Junior P Kaitlin Kennedy, who threw a no-hitter last season, had 69 strikeouts in 63 innings pitched, in addition to hitting 4 homeruns at the plate. Following a third-place finish at Class 5A state, the consistent success of ARKANSAS CITY softball continues in 2009 behind a loaded junior class. Junior C Taylor Hatfield didn't allow a baserunner to steal second base all last season, committing 1 error and putting out 38. She hit 11 doubles and 4 triples. - Junior Laken Parker ended last season with an .891 slugging percentage. Parker batted .527 in the clean-up spot, with 4 doubles, 3 triples, 4 homeruns and 28 RBI. She struck out only twice. - Junior Liz Grizzle, a first-team all-league shortstop as a freshman, batted .442 and committed only 4 errors as a sophomore while recovering from a broken finger on her throwing hand. - Senior LF Paden Parker batted .452 last season. She was a member of Ark City's 2006 and 2007 state title teams. - Sophomore 2B Taylor Graham had an .878 slugging percentage as a freshman, hitting 3 homeruns and committing 1 error. Softball Notes: - NORTHWEST returns the core of their 2008 team, including senior P Jojo Odell, after losing by one run in the opening round of the Class 6A state tournament for the second consecutive season. Odell had a 0.65 ERA and 79 strikeouts in 13 games last season, giving up only 6 earned runs, 7 extra-base hits and 7 walks. She also had 20 RBI and 5 extra-base hits at the plate. Leading batter, senior OF Courtney Harp, hit .433 last season and scored 29 runs. Sophomore 1B Kelsey Berlin batted .412 with 25 RBI as a freshman. - MAIZE HIGH returns four of its top five hitters, including senior RF Jessica Viramontez (.469 BA, 25 RBI, 7 doubles), from the 2008 season, which ended in disappointment with a 2-1 sub-state final loss to Northwest. Junior Cara Mattson had 19 hits, including 9 for extra bases, in just 37 at bats as a sophomore. - Coming off its sixth consecutive trip to state, UDALL is currently the most successful softball program in the area. Class 2-1A state champs in 2006, third in '07 and runner-up last May, Udall loses only three starters. Five first-team all-class selections return. Junior P Chanea Sawyer threw 4 no-hitters and 11 shutouts with 163 Ks. Junior 3B Bekah Benvin batted .524, senior CF Felecia Franklin batted .339 with only one strikeout and junior P Whitney Kistler returns from injury. - Ahead of the curve with the return of Karley Schmelzer's 214 strikeouts in 141 innings from last season, ANDALE-GARDEN PLAIN will find offense from Schmelzer and juniors SS Kelsey Fisher (.420 BA) and 1B Erin Carney, who batted an astounding .565 as a sophomore. - Before finishing runner-up in Class 5A last spring, CARROLL ended Ark City's two-year reign by beating them 1-0 in nine innings in the semifinals. Senior P Katie Armagost, signed with Wichita State, struck out 101 batters and batted. .483 last season. Trisha Holzman batted .433 with 5 triples and 19 stolen bases, and Kendra Crippen batted .412 with a .984 fielding percentage. - After winning one of the state's most diffcult regionals, ANDOVER CENTRAL could only be stopped at state by Andale-Garden Plain, 1-0, before placing third in 4A. Senior P Nikki Armagost, one of the state's best, struck out 191 batters in 2008 and batted .495. Vic Wilson (.493 BA) and Sarah Huelskamp (.462) also led a team which batted .328 overall. - On their way to the Class 3A state title game, INDEPENDENT batted .507 as a team last season. Coach Corey Lyon, who built the program from scratch, has moved on to Paris Junior College (Texas), but junior SS Haley McGregor returns. Batting .554, McGregor hit 6 homeruns and 12 doubles last season. Senior OF Cheyenne Stewart batted .638 with 18 doubles and 5 triples. Senior IF Mattie Mae Milligan batted .623. - After losing nearly their entire starting lineup to graduation, GODDARD, third at 6A state last May, turns to an already experienced sophmore class, led by Shelby Davis (.404 BA), Jessica Sturm (.333) and Cori O'Donoghue (.286).