Page 15 - TR_RVO_HSBaseball_Softball_2020

SUNDAY, MARCH 22, 2020 THREE RIVERS EDITION/RIVER VALLEY & OZARK EDITION OF THE ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE DIAMOND ROUNDUP
15SS
SEARCY LADY LIONS
BY SAM PIERCE
STAFF WRITER
Head coach Matt Long has been at Searcy since 2012, and last year’s 5-20 record was one of his worst years.
“We had a lot of close games that could have gone either way, but we just didn’t put it together,” Long said. “We lost our ace pitcher [at the beginning of the season], but we got to do a better job of overcoming that and
moving on to the next game.”
Maegan Pistokache, who is now a freshman
at Harding University, went down with a season-ending injury at the beginning of last season. As a junior at Searcy, she had a 1.30 ERA but didn’t pitch an inning as a senior. Junior Chloe Martinez had to quickly fill that spot, pitching 82 innings last year.
“She handled it mentally well. I thought she fought as much as she could,” Long said of Martinez. “I only expect her to get even better this year. She is a really driven player, and she is there to get better.
“She has worked hard in the offseason and the summer. She is playing ball and improving. I think she has gotten a couple more miles per hour on her fastball, and she is a lot more confident.
“And that’s a big part of pitching — confidence.”
Also returning this year is senior Isabelle Holeyfield, who had a batting average of .310 in 2019.
“She’s always had a good bat, and I think she was second or third in RBIs,” Long said. “She works hard. She is always wanting one or two extra cuts in the cages.”
Freshmen Alexis Reardon and Haylee Cullum will start in the infield this season.
“They both play a lot of ball in the summer and are pretty competitive,” Long said. “Alexis hasabigarmandabigbat.Shemightbea better catcher than third baseman, so she will play catcher some this year.”
Long said Cullum is the quickest on the team and knows a lot of softball. He said he feels comfortable with her in center field. Senior Jessica Rose, who had a .929 field percentage a year ago, will be the primary center fielder,
Conference: 5A-East
Coach: Matt Long
Assistant coach: Jacob Futrell 2019 record: 5-20
Returning starters: Seniors Isabelle Holeyfield and Jessica Rose; juniors Chloe Martinez, Myka Looney and Emilee Knighton; and sophomores Ashlynn Thomas and Juliette Smith
SEARCY SOFTBALL
APRIL 3 .......................................@NEWPORT APRIL 7 .................................... PARAGOULD* APRIL 9 ......... RUSSELLVILLE @HARDING UNIV. APRIL 13 ............................ WEST MEMPHIS* APRIL 16 .........................................@WYNNE APRIL 21 ........................@MOUNTAIN HOME* APRIL 23 ...............................@SYLVAN HILLS APRIL 28 ............... @GREENE COUNTY TECH* MAY 4 ......................................JONESBORO*
*DENOTES CONFERENCE GAMES
STACI VANDAGRIFF/THREE RIVERS EDITION
Searcy junior Myka Looney fields a ball during an indoor practice.
with Cullum as a reserve, the coach said. “Jessica has led off the last couple of years,” Long said. “She has had some struggles at the
plate, but she always fights through it.
“She is trying to lead the team in the right
direction.”
Searcy is set to host Russellville at Harding
University’s softball complex on April 9, beginning at 5 p.m.
Searcy looks to handle adversity better in 2020