Last season the Lady Bears of Little Cypress-Mauriceville made one of their furthest runs in the post season for several years. Coach Dena Adkins and her Lady Bears made it to the fourth round of the playoffs before being eliminated by an outstanding Liberty Hill team.
Adkins is looking forward to an even deeper run this season in the playoffs and has the players returning from last year to do it. Seniors coming back include Jonee’ Villanueva who will play some in the outfield and infield. Jayce Perry will be at first base. Emily Landry and Alicia Merritt will help the varsity.
JoAnna Henry and Madison Murdock are among the juniors returning and both will be in the outfield. Murdock was first team all-district last year. Brianna Frenzel was the district Defensive MVP last season. Shelby Smith will see time behind the plate. Renna Toomey will help the Lady Bears in the circle and wherever else she is needed. Morgan Weaver and Ally White will play on the varsity at LC-M. White is coming back from an injury.
Newcomer of the year in 2017 was Olivia Leavings, and she will again be the starting catcher. Megan Peveto is also a sophomore for the Lady Bears.
The only freshman to make the LC-M varsity this season is Bailey Frenzel. Adkins informs that Bailey is the younger sister of Brianna Frenzel.
Coach Adkins has a number of good hitters returning, but she is counting on a new face to swing a big bat too. She thinks her lineup will be pretty solid with as many as twelve good bats. Bailey Frenzel swings a big stick according to Adkins and could surprise some opponents in the early going.
The Lady Bears have hit well in the early scrimmages. Adkins is wanting to see better pitching which will be expected in district play so the Lady Bears can get some good swings against type-flight pitching.
Pitching is always important in softball, and Adkins should have some quality arms to call on at LC-M. Adkins is extremely excited about Brianna Frenzel starting her third year in the circle for the Lady Bears. The coach reminds Brianna was the Defensive Player of the Year last season. Renna Toomey is throwing hard and her pitches are breaking well. Toomey should be outstanding in the circle. The other Frenzel, Bailey, is also a pitcher with a great work ethic and throws the ball hard. “I’m looking forward to see what she can do as well,” Adkins added.
Building on last season’s strong finish, Coach Adkins is setting the bar higher for her Lady Bears this season. The goal as it is every season for Little Cypress-Mauriceville in softball is to win the district. After that Adkins wants to advance past the fourth round of the playoffs. The coach and the Lady Bears want to make it to Austin for the Final Four.
Adkins said that is their goal every year. They do not practice, workout, and run hard every day to be second or to be average. She wants the Lady Bears to be above average. “I think this group has the heart, they have the skill, I think they can do it, and I’m really looking forward to seeing just how far we can go,” Adkins concluded.
Social Media