Cavs enter 2021 softball season with high hopes

Things were looking up when the season came crashing down.

In mid-March, the John Carroll Catholic High School softball team was rounding into form. There were high points, like wins over Auburn and Hoover, but also a few losses that left head coach Jeri Beck perplexed.

But the Cavs’ final mark on the 2020 season was that critical win over Hoover and gave the team an 8-6-1 record at the time of the COVID-19 shutdown.

“We were just starting to get it together,” Beck said. “It all started clicking.”

John Carroll has a few positions to fill around the diamond after the graduation of last year’s senior group. Most notably, centerfielder Emma Bauer started for John Carroll for six years and will be missed. Abigayle Parker logged several innings in the pitching circle over her six years in the program and turned into a solid outfielder as well. The Cavs are also replacing their starting catcher, Claire Boone.

For Beck, she has an answer to fill the vacated positions. But in moving players around, other holes have been opened up. Freshman Mallory Ogle likely slides over to center field, which leaves both corner outfield spots up for grabs.

“The strides Mallory made between her seventh and eighth grade years were unbelievable,” Beck said. “She tracks the ball so well. She’s a heck of an outfielder.”

With Boone’s graduation, junior Charlotte Phillips will take her turn as the team’s primary catcher after spending much of last year at second base.

Kayla Coley-Drayton returns to man first base, while Gracie Mills is back at shortstop. In the circle, junior Macey Ogle returns as the team’s ace pitcher.

“I’m hoping that she’s gained even more confidence and displays that even more on the field. She can stroke the ball, too, at the plate, so don’t count that out,” Beck said of the older Ogle sister.

Second base, third base and the two outfield spots are what the Cavs are looking to replace at the season’s outset. “We’re putting the puzzle pieces together,” Beck said.

A couple of new faces that will push to take over some of those spots are freshman Annie Gregory, a transfer from Mountain Brook, and seventh grader Emily Williams. Look for Mallory Ogle and Gregory to also log some innings in the circle.

Last year’s Cavs were eager to prove that their third-place finish at state in 2019 was no fluke. That sense of motivation has carried over to this spring’s squad.

“This team, they’ve hit the field this year with a phenomenal attitude,” Beck said. “Some of the girls have really stepped up to be great leaders on the field. I’m enjoying going out there every day with them.”

John Carroll is the presumptive favorite in Class 5A, Area 9, so another postseason run to the regional and state tournaments is not out of the question. Between the outset of the season and the end, Beck wants to see her team continue to improve and practice consistency in all facets.

“You’ve got to have consistency in the batting order and make the routine plays, and every once in a while throw that ESPN [highlight] play out there,” she said.

If the Cavs can do those things, big things are possible.

“There is no ceiling,” Beck said. “The sky’s the limit; it’s up to them.”