Wells makes USA Softball U18 team
Brooke Wells developed a competitive streak by facing off with her brother Drew in their own backyard.
It didn’t matter whether they were pitching or hitting. Brooke and Drew were sibling rivals. Who had better grades, who could lift the most weight, who could run to the car the fast. Who won those family squabbles? “Me!” Brooke said without hesitation. It should be noted that Brooke is three years older than Drew, who has developed into a fine athlete in his own right. Only a freshman, he earned a spot on Vista Ridge’s varsity baseball team. Brother and sister have honed their hitting skills by sharing a batting cage in their backyard.
As one of the best high school softball players in the Austin area — if not the entire state — Wells has retained her competitive edge. And people have noticed. The senior first baseman/pitcher recently was selected to be part of the USA Softball U18 team, which will compete against the U.S. Olympic softball team in June in Oklahoma before it takes a journey to Paris for the Olympic Games.
Wells, who has signed to play college softball at Houston, hopes this experience will be a springboard for her to be on the Olympic team in 2028 in Los Angeles. Or maybe in Brisbane, Australia, in 2032.
Wells started to play competitive softball at age 5 and it didn’t take long for her to set goals. She played baseball with boys and held her own. She was a power hitter in her younger days and that has carried over to high school.
“Brooke is one of the most feared players when she steps into the batter’s box, and she commands the respect of her peers and the people she competes
against,” Vista Ridge coach JR Romero said. “She is the ultra-competitor, and she has success written all over her. I had the privilege of having her in class this year for economics, and she takes her academics extremely seriously. She's a straight-A student.”
Romero's assertion that his star player is “feared” rings true. Batting .556 with 10 homers as a senior, she has 27 hits to complement 27 intentional walks.
Her on-base percentage is .738. On Tuesday, Wells homered, doubled and drew two more intentional passes in a 13-2 victory over Stony Point.
Wells said she “fell in love” with the Houston Cougars and her new coaches when she visited the campus.
Akins girl takes a step up
Former Akins wrestler Deonne Topete, featured in the American-Statesman last year when she was having an undefeated season at Akins, continues to shine at the college.
Competing for Ottaway (Ariz.) University, she took second place in the 195pound division at the National Collegiate Wrestling championships last week in Shreveport.
She competed despite coming off a concussion in one of the early rounds of the tournament.
“Her opponent whacked her in the head and neck several times without any call by the ref,” said Aeron Farmer, Topete's grandmother.
“She had a headache and neck pain after, but nothing was medically checked out. To me, she was visibly off in the last match, almost like she was in slow motion.”
Topete did not know she had a concussion until after the meet was over. At Akins, she qualified for state all four years, earning medals twice. Last year she was 20-0 before losing at the state meet. She finished in fifth place at state and completed the year 23-2.
Big honor for local athletes
On Wednesday, three Austin area athletes were honored by the Greater Austin Sports Foundation for excellence in their respective sports and in the classroom:
Josiah Moseley, a forward for the Stony Point basketball team, led the Tigers to the UIL Class 6A state championship game, the first state tournament appearance in school history. The Villanova-bound senior was named Gatorade's Texas boys basketball player of the year after leading Stony Point to a 38-2 season.
Savannah Skopal, a senior setter at Rouse, was named to the All-State volleyball all four years in high school. She capped her career with 1,586 assists, 386 digs, 157 kills, 74 aces and 70 blocks.
She will play at Rice.
Neliaj Deleon, a junior goalie with the Georgetown soccer team, helped the Eagles reach the UIL state tournament semifinals. A member of the 2023 Class 5A all-tournament team, she will play at Vanderbilt.
Hyde Park high and mighty
The Hyde Park softball team continues to set milestones. With an 11-2 win over Victoria St. Joe's on Tuesday, it marked the 107th career victory for the senior class, tying a school record set in 2015.
Skye Perez whacked a home run and pitcher Taylor Haywood won her 18th game of the season, striking out 13 batters to help the Panthers improve to 24-5.