Norm Wood
06-07-2007, 07:44 PM
New Kent heads to Group AA state semifinals
By Norm Wood | nwood@dailypress.com
As a former second baseman and outfielder at Methodist University, New Kent coach Betsey Lane took plenty of big road trips during her athletic career, including a couple of journeys to the NCAA Division III national softball tournament.
Her playing days are over, but she’s in the midst of what might become her favorite road trip today.
Lane and her New Kent team jumped on a bus Thursday to make the three-hour trip to Radford University for today’s 10 a.m. Group AA state softball tournament semifinal against Virginia High (23-4). The winner will play Saturday in the state championship against the winner of the 1 p.m. semifinal, which matches Tunstall against Broad Run.
"I want to win so bad I can taste it," said Lane, who played at Methodist from 1999 to 2002 and is in her first season as New Kent’s coach.
"I told (the team) this is what you do in college. Road trips are the best part of being a team. You get to eat dinner together. Maybe you get to go shopping together if there’s some down time. It’s a great chance to bond as a team, but we have a job to do."
Of course, road trips aren’t new for most of New Kent’s players, which have had the luxury of playing three of their last four playoff games at home. More than half the team competes on elite softball teams in the summer that travel to every corner of the country, which might explain why a team from tiny New Kent (population 13,462) is so well-prepared for this tournament.
Like many of her teammates, New Kent pitcher Becca Mills (23-3) is about a week away from beginning her hectic travel softball schedule. She has already pitched 185 innings of high school ball this spring, but there are no signs of fatigue. She expects to be at full strength Friday – and possibly Saturday if New Kent gets that far – for what she hopes will be the most important 14 innings of her high school career.
"I’m not really tired," said Mills, who has a 0.42 ERA and has struck out 207 batters. "Actually, I think of this as normal for this time of year. During summer ball, you pitch more than one game (on game days) most of the time, so this is kind of like getting ready for the summer."
There’s no better way to prepare for the summer than by capping off the spring with a state championship. New Kent, which is in its first state softball tournament since 2003, is hot at the right time.
It has won 14 consecutive games, a stretch bolstered by the postseason hitting of second baseman Tyler Fleming, shortstop Anush Mooradian, catcher Laura Bauer, third baseman Kayla Timberlake and designated player Nikki Jones.
New Kent’s bats will be challenged by Virginia’s capable combination of pitchers, which include Cassie Campbell and freshman Lonnie Johnston. Campbell (17-3) is best when she can change speeds between her rise ball, curveball and change-up. Johnston (7-1) has given up just one earned run all season for Virginia, a school from Bristol that will drop back to Group A competition next season.
While quality pitching shouldn’t be an issue for either team, Virginia coach Barry Reed has other concerns. He’s interested to see how his team will score runs.
"We’ve got to score two or three runs," said Reed, whose team has been to the state semifinals four times in the last 12 years and lost to Broad Run in the 2000 championship game. "Offensively, we’re not the greatest. We’re not the best team in the final four. There’s going to be only three or four runs scored in these games, and some of them are going to be scored due to mistakes being made. I just hope we’re not the ones making the mistakes."
By Norm Wood | nwood@dailypress.com
As a former second baseman and outfielder at Methodist University, New Kent coach Betsey Lane took plenty of big road trips during her athletic career, including a couple of journeys to the NCAA Division III national softball tournament.
Her playing days are over, but she’s in the midst of what might become her favorite road trip today.
Lane and her New Kent team jumped on a bus Thursday to make the three-hour trip to Radford University for today’s 10 a.m. Group AA state softball tournament semifinal against Virginia High (23-4). The winner will play Saturday in the state championship against the winner of the 1 p.m. semifinal, which matches Tunstall against Broad Run.
"I want to win so bad I can taste it," said Lane, who played at Methodist from 1999 to 2002 and is in her first season as New Kent’s coach.
"I told (the team) this is what you do in college. Road trips are the best part of being a team. You get to eat dinner together. Maybe you get to go shopping together if there’s some down time. It’s a great chance to bond as a team, but we have a job to do."
Of course, road trips aren’t new for most of New Kent’s players, which have had the luxury of playing three of their last four playoff games at home. More than half the team competes on elite softball teams in the summer that travel to every corner of the country, which might explain why a team from tiny New Kent (population 13,462) is so well-prepared for this tournament.
Like many of her teammates, New Kent pitcher Becca Mills (23-3) is about a week away from beginning her hectic travel softball schedule. She has already pitched 185 innings of high school ball this spring, but there are no signs of fatigue. She expects to be at full strength Friday – and possibly Saturday if New Kent gets that far – for what she hopes will be the most important 14 innings of her high school career.
"I’m not really tired," said Mills, who has a 0.42 ERA and has struck out 207 batters. "Actually, I think of this as normal for this time of year. During summer ball, you pitch more than one game (on game days) most of the time, so this is kind of like getting ready for the summer."
There’s no better way to prepare for the summer than by capping off the spring with a state championship. New Kent, which is in its first state softball tournament since 2003, is hot at the right time.
It has won 14 consecutive games, a stretch bolstered by the postseason hitting of second baseman Tyler Fleming, shortstop Anush Mooradian, catcher Laura Bauer, third baseman Kayla Timberlake and designated player Nikki Jones.
New Kent’s bats will be challenged by Virginia’s capable combination of pitchers, which include Cassie Campbell and freshman Lonnie Johnston. Campbell (17-3) is best when she can change speeds between her rise ball, curveball and change-up. Johnston (7-1) has given up just one earned run all season for Virginia, a school from Bristol that will drop back to Group A competition next season.
While quality pitching shouldn’t be an issue for either team, Virginia coach Barry Reed has other concerns. He’s interested to see how his team will score runs.
"We’ve got to score two or three runs," said Reed, whose team has been to the state semifinals four times in the last 12 years and lost to Broad Run in the 2000 championship game. "Offensively, we’re not the greatest. We’re not the best team in the final four. There’s going to be only three or four runs scored in these games, and some of them are going to be scored due to mistakes being made. I just hope we’re not the ones making the mistakes."