Local softball players rack up All-State awards
A little more than a month after the end of the regular season, the Georgia Athletic Coaches Association All-State softball teams have finally been released.
And, as usual, Catoosa and Walker Counties were well-represented.
Class A Public School state runner-up Gordon Lee led the way from the area with seven All-State players, including three on the first team.
Those players included senior Emma Langston, junior Chloee Fryar and freshman E.G. Hixon.
Langston, who pitched and played first base for the Lady Trojans, batted .392 with four doubles, two homeruns and 32 RBIs this past fall. She also went 16-3 in the circle with a 1.30 ERA in 91 innings of work, recording with 104 strikeouts against 22 walks.
Fryar, an outfielder, took over the tradition-rich leadoff spot in the batting order in her first season with the program and set the table by hitting .515 with two doubles, a triple and an insidethe-park homer. She swiped 47 bases, scored 50 runs and drove in 11 more.
Batting one spot behind Fryar in the lineup was Hixon, the team’s second baseman. The rookie led the Navy-and-White with a .520 average, adding three doubles and four triples, driving in 37 runs, scoring 47 times and stealing 32 bases.
Gordon Lee’s second-team selections featured senior catcher Allie Farrow (.420, eight doubles, three homers, 29 RBIs), junior outfielder Emma Phillips (.370, two doubles, 12 RBIs, 19 runs, 10 stolen bases), and a pair of freshmen in third baseman Tenslee Wilson (.407, five doubles, three triples, one homerun, 28 RBIs, 34 runs, eight stolen bases) and shortstop Gracie Helton (.405, nine doubles, two homeruns, 23 RBIs, 27 runs, eight stolen bases).
Heritage, who finished third in the Class AAA state tournament, had a pair of first-team selections in seniors Madeline Stone and Riley Kokinda.
Stone, the catcher, hit .452 with eight doubles, two triples and six round-trippers, while driving in 30 runs. Kokinda, the centerfielder, batted .433 with nine doubles, three triples and one homerun to go with 26 RBIs, 42 runs scored and 10 stolen bases.
Senior Zoe Wright (.447, seven doubles, 11 RBIs, 21 runs, 10 stolen bases) was a second-team selection, while freshman third baseman Macie Collins (.418, 11 doubles, two triples, one homerun, 23 RBIs, 18 runs) received an honorable mention nod.
Ringgold, who made it to the second round of the Class AAA state playoffs, had a first-team selection in senior Baileigh Pitts, who hit a team-high .505 with 10 doubles, three triples, four homeruns, 32 RBIs and 30 runs scored.
The Lady Tigers also had a second-team selection in junior second baseman Riley Heard (.400, five doubles, two triples, 14 RBIs, 24 runs, eight stolen bases).
Ridgeland had a Class AAAA honorable mention pick in senior shortstop Cordasia Watkins (.485, seven doubles, five triples, 17 RBIs, 23 runs scored).
In addition to the All-State awards, Pitts was named to the GACA AllState all-star game roster for Regions 6 and 8, which encompasses every classification in Georgia.
The Georgia Dugout Club also recently released its softball awards for the 2021 season.
Farrow, along with Dixiana Sims of state champion ACE Charter, shared state Player of the Year honors for Class A Public, while Gordon Lee head coach Dana Mull was Co-Coach of the Year, along with Josh McLendon of ACE Charter.