Page 6 - TL Diamond Roundup 2016

EYES ON THE PRIZE
Caradine looking for title in final season
Keyonna Caradine’s softball resume is stacked with individ- ual accolades. She is working on becoming a four-time all-stater,
as she has led Malvern in batting average and RBIs while showing range at third base. She has also starred on a national stage in summer softball.
However, Caradine would trade some of her individual honors for team
success. The Leopards earned a state tournament bid
her sophomore year but failed to make the
field last season. As a senior, she is de- termined to lead
a veteran team back to the state tournament
and end her varsity career with a deep run.
“Our goal is to make it to the [state
tournament
finals],” Caradine said.
“When we get in, we will be ready. We have a good team with some good senior leadership.”
Malvern coach Darryl Baker is confident the
BY NATE OLSON
Photo by Kelvin Green
Leopards can make a splash with Caradine leading the way, even though the Leopards will have to contend with 4A-7 Conference foes Mena and Bauxite, who were 2015 Class 4A state champions and runners-up, respectively.
“[Caradine] is a vocal leader on the team and does a good job with the other girls,” Baker said. “She also leads by exam- ple and works extremely hard in practice. She communicates well, and we have five really good seniors. They have been playing together for at least two years, and they are determined to make the state tournament. It’s not going to be easy with Mena, Bauxite and Nashville in our conference, but I feel good about it.”
Caradine has had a passion for softball since she began playing when she was 6. She also played basketball but gave it up after last season to concentrate on softball.
“Most of us have been playing since we were little; we have come up together,” she said. “I just like the intensity of it. I love playing softball. I can play just about [any position], but I have been playing third base since I was 8. I love the challenge of it.”
As she got into high school, Caradine began taking the sport even more seriously. She plays on a summer travel team called the Young Gunz and helped the team to World Series titles in Topeka, Kansas, and
Gulf Shores, Alabama, respectively, the past two summers. She was also selected to play in an all-star classic featuring the state’s top underclassmen the past two years at Hen- drix College in Conway.
Caradine impresses with her mobility and is light on her feet, despite her large frame at third base. Baker said some oppos- ing batters try to lay bunts in front of her, assuming she doesn’t have the range to field them. However, Caradine pounces on the ground balls and has superior arm strength to gun the ball to first base. Baker said Caradine is also deceptive on the base paths and is “smart” about taking extra bases. She gave everyone a scare last year when she slid hard into home on a clean play that turned the Arkansas Baptist catcher head over heels. The play was ruled a legal slide, and the catcher wasn’t hurt.
“It was just a good hard play,” Baker said. “She runs so hard, and she is very smart.”
Caradine is a dangerous hitter and always a threat to hit a home run. She had four homers as a freshman, one during an injury-plagued sophomore season and five last year. She has hit over .400 each season and has had 25 or more RBIs each year.
“When she hits the ball, it just flies off the bat,” Baker said.
Caradine has changed her approach at the plate, and it has helped her to be even more potent. The first two varsity seasons, she had a tendency to take the first pitch.
CARADINE continued on 10TT
ffTTTffffffTfffTffffOther up-and-coming players in the Tri-Lakes area
BAILEY BUFFINGTON
BAUXITE LADY MINERS
• .416 batting average, .515 SLG in 2015
• 1.20 ERA in 2015
L.J. HELMICH
HASKELL HARMONY GROVE LADY CARDINALS
• .448 career batting average, .541 career on-base percentage • 1.05 career ERA, 256 strikeouts
JORDAN HEBNER
BENTON LADY PANTHERS
• .406 batting average,
3 doubles, 1 home run in 2015