Lady Southerners rebuild with young team in 2018

As the Lady Southerners head into the 2018 season with a roster of mostly sophomores and juniors, coach Larry Lawellin said he is excited to build up his young players. “With only two seniors on the roster, we are a fairly young team,” Lawellin said. “Defensively and offensively, we have rebuilt from the top to bottom.” Returning senior Kyleigh Vines will be a key player in 2018, the coach said. “She’s a very solid contact hitter with some power,” Lawellin said of the senior. “She’s also a four-year starter and a two year all-state pitcher with a lot of experience. She’s very accurate and good at changing speeds to all parts of the plate.” The coach said senior catcher Haley Lisenby will also provide leadership for the Lady Southerners. “Haley brings the best overhand speed and pop-up time behind the plate we’ve seen at Southside for the past few years,” Lawellin said. “She will stop a lot of extra bases with her aggressiveness and accuracy.” The coach said junior Carlee Gilpin

can cover a lot of ground in the outfield, sophomore Shelby Warden will bring power to the plate, and sophomore Aliyha Jackson puts a lot of pressure on the defense with her exceptional speed when she’s running the bases. “We feel with this team, if we can get some experience under some younger players’ belts and keep some key players healthy,” Lawellin said, “we expect to be in the mix when it counts the most.”