12 Jackson area high school softball Super Seniors for 2018 season
We are already into the second week of the 2018 high school softball season.
Here are 12 Super Seniors to keep an eye on as the season goes on:
Brylie Brown (Lexington, P) – Brown, an All-West Tennessee first-team member in 2017, will be the senior leader of the Lady Tigers’ pitching staff this season. The staff has more depth this season, but she will be the veteran that will be calm under pressure.
She finished the 2017 season with a 17-1 record as she had a 1.07 ERA with 52 strikeouts and 17 earned runs.
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Sophie Dunavant (Jackson Christian, C) – Dunavant, the 2017 All-West Tennessee Player of the Year, is back for her senior season and trying to get the Lady Eagles right back to the state tournament.
This time she must do it in Division II-A, but the Freed-Hardeman signee has shown that she plays here best in tough situations.
Last season, she batted .528 with 48 RBI, 50 runs scored, 10 home runs and 14 doubles.
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Chelsey Gore (Scotts Hill, INF) – Gore, a UT Martin signee, missed most of last season after tearing her ACL, MCL and meniscus on April 18.
She will be ready to fight this season as the Lady Lions have been moved to Class AA, and she wants to show why she is an NCAA Division I type player. Before the injury, she batted .444 as Scotts Hill’s leadoff with 22 stolen bases and 10 doubles
MORE: 12 Super Seniors for the high school boys soccer season
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Kaitlyn Kelley (Lexington, INF) – Kelley, an All-West Tennessee first-team selection in 2017, seems to always find a way when runners are in scoring position.
She finished last season with 58 RBI for the Lady Tigers to go along with a .541 batting average and 11 doubles. She is a power hitter in Lexington’s lineup can break open a scoring run any time she steps up to the plate.
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Brittney Minor (Camden, INF) – Minor, an All-West Tennessee first-team selection in 2017, was one of the top power hitters in West Tennessee last season.
She led the team with 15 home runs to go along with five doubles and four triples. Those extra-base hits resulted in a .450 batting average with 52 RBI. For Camden to have a chance to compete in District 12-AA, Minor will play a key role in making sure the Lady Lions don’t leave potential runs on base.
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Caitlin Mitchell (Scotts Hill, P) – Mitchell, an All-West Tennessee first-team member in 2017, is a multi-dimensional player for the Lady Lions.
She is one of the team’s top pitchers, finishing last season with a 1.96 ERA to go along with 106 strikeouts. Mitchell also brings some power at the plate as she had 16 home runs last season, while batting .453 and finishing with 57 RBI.
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Madison Myers (Crockett County, OF) – Myers, the 2017 All-West Tennessee Hitter of the Year, is back after leading the Lady Cavaliers to their deepest postseason run in a decade.
She batted .608 last season with 65 runs scored, 10 doubles and 16 RBI.
Crockett County reached the region semifinals last season before losing to eventual state runner-up McNairy Central.
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Kallie Pickens (USJ, INF) – Pickens, an All-West Tennessee first-team selection in 2017, is the senior leader this season for the Lady Bruins.
She helped lead USJ to the Division II-A sub-state last season with a .506 batting average to go along with 33 RBI, 33 runs, 14 doubles and six home runs.
Pickens signed with UT Martin in the offseason.
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Hope Radford (Greenfield, UTL) – Radford, an All-West Tennessee first-team member in 2017, helped the Lady Yellowjackets to be more competitive in district play last season.
She will try to help Greenfield compete for the District 13-A championship this year.
As a junior, Radford, a Martin Methodist signee, batted .550 with 23 RBI. She will see if she can keep those numbers high again this season.
MORE: South Side girls started season hot and ready to compete for district title
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Katie Turner (McNairy Central, P) – Turner, the 2017 All-West Tennessee Pitcher of the Year, is back for her senior season to try and get the Lady Bobcats back to the Class AA state title game.
The Lipscomb University signee was close to unstoppable in the postseason last year as McNairy Central won the District 14-AA and Region 7-AA titles before finishing runner-up at the state tournament.
She finished last season with a 27-9 record through 231.1 innings of action. She had a 0.73 ERA and 404 strikeouts.
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Audrie Washburn (McKenzie, P) – Washburn, an All-West Tennessee first-team member, is a versatile player for the Lady Rebels, who are ready to try and win the District 11-A crown.
Washburn is McKenzie’s go-to pitcher, and she finished last season with 171 strikeouts. She is also key at the plate, batting .460 with 12 home runs and 42 RBI.
If the defense works well behind her, scoring runs on McKenzie will be tough.
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Kendall Westbrooks (Milan, INF) – Westbrooks missed all of last season rehabbing from an injury. She is ready to be back on the field this season, so opposing teams should watch out.
As a sophomore, Westbrooks hit 10 home runs. She will try to add to that this year and see if she can lead the Lady Bulldogs to the District 13-AA crown.
Reach Michael Odom at michodom@jacksonsun.com or 731-425-9754. Follow him on Twitter @JSWriterMichael.