New region, same goal for the Alcovy Lady Tigers as they look to continue their success and climb back to Columbus.
Over the last two seasons, Alcovy has gone 28-0 in Region 3-AAAAAA play. Now, they enter the uncharted waters of Region 8-AAAAA, where they will see the likes of Loganville, Apalachee, Winder-Barrow, Habersham, Clarke Central and Jackson County.
The challenge is welcomed by head coach Miranda Lamb.
“Heading into a new region this year, we know the style of play is going to be very different from what we have seen in other years,” Lamb said. “Moving to a different classification and a different region, it’s going to have its own tricks and trades. We know the level of play is going to be much higher in the region we are going to. We are excited for it.”
Along with that, the sense of urgency seems to be higher with one season left for the team's veteran senior class.
Senior Kailtyn Williams spoke about the challenges of this upcoming season and what responsibilities the senior class has taken on in the dugout.
“We are constantly working, because this region is going to be tough,” Kaitlyn Williams said. “We are going to face some adversity and we are going to need to know how to bounce back since it may not go the way we think it’s going to go. The sense of urgency — with us being seniors — we need to step up in those spots to show the underclassmen how to carry on what we started. Because we have essentially built this from the ground up these last four years with our senior class and we don’t want it to fall off when we leave.”
This sentiment and mission is shared by fellow senior, CeCe Williams, too.
“It has changed a lot for me because now that we have stepped into being the seniors, we really try to get the younger girls at a faster pace,” CeCe said. “Especially because we are facing state ranked teams and with a new region. When we leave, we try to set the pace and set the urgency. We move at a much faster pace and the coaches are really preparing us for college at this pace. I am very excited for this season and I think we are going to have a good run this year.”
Outside of CeCe and Kaitlyn, Alcovy is returning players such as Kaylie McDonald, Jakyhia Lawrence, Alani Munoz and Jamaya Anderson.
Lamb spoke of Lawrence, who shined with a .378 average, 28 hits and 21 runs batted in as a freshman last season.
“We have Jakhyia Lawrence. She played utility for us, wherever we needed her,” Lamb said. “It will be similar for her this year, wherever we need her. We do have a couple incoming freshmen that are learning the pace that we have set. These two [Kailtyn and CeCe] have been great leaders for the seven incoming freshmen that we have.”
Assistant coach Marcus Smith shared what he wanted to see from the other players on the roster who can contribute around the numerous experience brought on by the starters.
“For the underclassmen, we had a few sophomores that played last year so we are looking forward to them taking that leadership role,” Smith said. “We have a freshman who is going to step in and be thrown into the fire so to say. We are hard on them at practice. Ensuring softball IQ is up to point, stamina is up to point and their overall toughness. You have to be tough right now to pay in high school.”
I think it prepares us for college and taking that next step by showing that you have that maturity and communication level — breaking things down step by step for maybe the girls who may not have played as long as you and being able to work at that pace with them while also being able to keep up your practice pace is very important. I think [another] key part to it is that we do have a couple freshmen who will come in and they are going to contribute a lot to our team. We need to make sure they are ready for the pace we are going to be playing at. BEcause the truth is, it is not the same pace as middle school ball. You are playing a lot stronger, faster, taller girls so we need to make sure we are the same page and are only as strong as our weakest link.”
