Latta softball team looking for strong finish as it tries to defend Class A title
Paisley Jackson having a strong season in circle
Latta – The Latta High School softball team had a magical run to the Class A state championship last season. Anna Rogers took over as head coach one week before the start of the state playoffs, and the Vikings worked their way to the crown.
With graduation though, Latta had to replace Maddie Berry, the Class A Player of the Year. It wasn’t an easy start to the season as Latta owned a 6-8 overall record at spring break to go with a 2-2 mark in Region 6.
Despite the slow start, Rogers believes good things await her team.
“We are a young team, but we have a lot of talent and have challenged ourselves by playing strong competition,” Rogers said. “We still hold high expectations and are committed to upholding the standard of Latta softball. As we head into the playoffs, our focus is on continuing to improve every day and playing for each other.”
Latta lost four players from last year, two of which are now playing collegiately in Berry and Katelyn Johnson at Wofford and Erskine, respectively.
Junior Paisley Jackson has taken over in the circle and has had a strong season. She had a 1.53 earned run average in nine games. She had faced 181 batters and struck out 87 of them while giving up 36 hits and walking just six.
Left-handed swinging shortstop Samantha Townsend is the only senior in the starting lineup and she bats leadoff. Junior catcher Chayse Walters bats in the 2 hole, while Jackson is batting third.
Sophomore second baseman Adlay Hyatt is the cleanup hitter with freshman first baseman Jaelynn Miller batting fifth and sophomore leftfielder Rylan Hunt batting sixth. Sophomore third baseman Sarah Bryant is seventh, eighth-grade rightfielder Lacie Barnhill is in the 8 hole and sophomore centerfielder Ryleigh Vicente flips the order.
Other members of the team are Kyrian Oxendine, Jessalyn Edens, Ke'Nyah Page, Lillie Jordan and Erianna Crawford.
LATTA BASEBALL STARTS STRONG
The Latta baseball team was off to a great start. The Vikings won 14 of their first 17 games and were 5-1 in region play.
JJ Welch had the highest batting average at .520. Fischer Richardson led in runs batted in with 19 and was tied for the lead in runs scored with 22 to go with a .391 average. Zach Lane was hitting .310 with 22 runs, while Caden Hyatt was at .367. BW Berry was at .405, and Mason Weatherford was at .424.
On the mound, Berry had a 4-0 win-loss record with a 0.97 ERA in 21 2/2 innings.
