By Mark Carpenter
People’s Defender
In a recent meeting/vote,the softball coaches of the Southern Hills Athletic Conference selected their All-Conference Team for the 2022 season. Of the 19 young ladies honored, seven of those hail from Adams County high schools: From Peebles- Marisa Moore, Caydence Carroll, and Lanie Johnston; from Manchester- Emilee Applegate and Rylie Young; from West Union, Olivia Lewis; and from North Adams, Kaylee Tumbleson.
It was a memorable senior season for Marisa Moore, as all four of her high school seasons have been. In her senior campaign which saw the Lady Indians advance to the district semi-finals, Moore smashed out 48 hits in 80 official at-bats for an eye-opening .613 batting average. She scored 42 runs, drove home 31, and added 13 stolen bases. Along with a .667 on-base percentage, Moore banged out 24 extra-base hits,11 doubles, 5 triples, and 8 home runs. Marisa began the season as the Peebles shortstop but was later moved to the catcher position and for all her efforts, she was chosen as the SHAC Player of the Year for the second consecutive season.
A second Lady Indian to receive All-Conference honors was sophomore outfielder Caydence Carroll, who burst on the scene in 2022 as a huge offensive threat in the Peebles lineup. Carroll had 31 hits in 72 at-bats for a .431 clip, scoring 23 runs and driving home 23 more. Nine of her hits went for extra bases and she accumulated a .494 on-base percentage.
The third Lady Indians to be named All-SHAC was pitcher Lanie Johnston. Johnston was the ironman of the Peebles pitching staff, tossing all but one full game and throwing 2,158 pitches. She went 10-8 in the center circle, striking out 86 batters in 148 innings pitched with a 4.31 earned run average. At the plate, Johnston hit .333 (28-84) . scored 13 runs, drove home 23, with six doubles.
It was a banner season for the Manchester Lady Greyhounds as they went further in tournament play than any softball team in school history (district finals) and the coached of the SHAC rewarded them with two players on the All-Conference Team. Freshman Rylie Young began what is certain to be a memorable Manchester career by hitting .515 (35-68) in her freshman campaign, accumulating 18 extra-base hits, including four home runs. Young scored 24 runs and drove home 25. She also doubled as one of the team’s two top pitchers, going 8-2 on the mound with a 2.93 ERA, striking out 81 hitters in 67 innings of work.
The second All-SHAC Lady Greyhound was sophomore Emilee Applegate. Applegate was the team’s main hurler, going 8-3 with an earned run average of 1.78 in 63 innings pitched. At the plate, Applegate had 32 hits in 75 official at-bats for a .427 average, 14 extra-base hits that included a pair of home runs. The Manchester soph drove home 25 runs and scored 24.
The West Union Lady Dragons were a much-improved team in 2022 and catcher Olivia Lewis was named to the SHAC All-Conference Team. Lewis batted .538 this spring (21-39) with a .591 on-base percentage. She drove home 12 runs, scored 12 runs, and stole 21 bases for the West Union squad.
The final Adams County member of the All-SHAC squad was North Adams senior Kaylee Tumbleson. Though the Lady Devils struggled as a team, Tumbleson provided senior leadership and turned in a solid final season in the green and gold.
The reminder of the 2022 All-SHAC Softball Team includes: Cora Akers and Bri Hill (Whiteoak); Sophia Edmisten and Grace Prewitt (Eastern Brown); Riley Finn (Ripley); Autumn Griffith (Lynchburg-Clay); Halle Hamilton, Caitlyn Quickle and Emily Vance (Fairfield); Jordan Mechlin, Izabella Waddle and Ava Wells (Fayetteville).
Along with Marisa Moore being named Player of the Year, Fairfield’s Mark Dettwiller was named the SHAC Coach of the Year.
2022 SHAC Final Softball Standings
Division I (Big School)
Fairfield 12-1
Eastern Brown 6-5
West Union 4-8
Lynchburg 2-9
North Adams 0-13
Division II (Small School)
Fayetteville 11-2
Manchester 9-3
Peebles 8-4
Ripley 5-8
Whiteoak 5-8
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