Lady Warriors return to Class AAA with playoff aspirations

The White County Lady Warriors softball team kicked off the regular season this week.

The Lady Warriors came up short in both of the games, falling to Habersham Central and Union County on consecutive days, but head coach Drew Owens believes thing will get better sooner rather than later.

“We are still trying to work out some of the kinks,” Owens said. “Normally we would have played 15 summer league games and been a lot further along, but not this year. We have a lot of young players in the lineup and we have to clean up some little things. We've got to cut out of the mistakes that we've made in the first two games. Something like missing signs or base running mistakes; we've got to cut out those kind of mistakes. But having said that, it's great to be playing and things are going to get better. We just have to get better by the time we start region play.”

The Lady Warriors are led by a pair of seniors – Emily Anderson and Katlynn Palmer. Both members of the Class of 2021 are four-year players and have been big time contributors during their prep careers.

Williams will be a regular in the outfield, while Palmer will see time at shortstop and in the outfield.

“They've both been in the program for four years, so they know what to expect and they know what we are trying to do. As a coach, it's hard sometimes to get on the same wave length with all of your players, and Emily and Katie help with that. They are both like having another coach on the field. They take time to work with the younger players and tell them what they need to do. And they are both good players.”

The roster is loaded with a good group of underclassmen. The junior  duo of Lianna O'Kelly and Annika Vandiver are both returning starters. The junior class also includes Reagan Dunagan, an All-Region first team pick last year, who will miss the entire season due to a shoulder injury.

O'Kelly moves to the top of the Lady Warriors' pitching staff, with Vandiver sliding into the No. 2 spot.

O'Kelly manned centerfield most of the season last year and was an All-Region first team pick. O'Kelly finished the 2019 season with a 323 batting average and had a .421 on-base percentage. She led the team with 10 walks and tied for the team-lead with 16 RBI, and second on the team with 17 runs. In region games, O'Kelly hit. 333 with a .459 OBP, and had a team-best 10 RBI.

In the circle, O'Kelly worked 29 innings with a 2-1 record and 27 strikeouts. She posted a no-hitter and a perfect game in back-to-back pitching performances late in the season.

Vandiver, a All-Region second team pick last year, led the pitching staff with a 5-5 record, working a team-high 51.2 innings. She also led the staff with 50 strikeouts, and was 2-2 against region competition with a 4.96 earned run average.

Vandiver hit .351 last season, with 12 RBI and 12 runs.

The roster includes eight sophomores in Katelyn Boman, Cree Cantrell, Kaylie Holbrook, Caitlyn Gailey, Madison Rice, Georgia Thomas, Hannah Garrett, and Mackenzie Turner.

Cantrell, who manned third base most of her freshman campaign, finished the year with .265 batting average and a .390 OBP. Cantrell was even better against region competition, hitting .344 with a .447 OBP. She tied for second on the team during the season with 17 runs, and also had 13 RBI. Along with third base, Cantrell is expected to also see time at catcher.

Boman filled the role at shortstop and had a solid high school debut. She was solid on defense, committing only four errors all season, and had 27 putouts and 26 assists. At the plate, she compiled a .387 OBP, with 15 runs and drove in seven runs.

Rice has missed most of the summer work with an injury, but is expected to see time at catcher once she returns to the lineup. Holbrook will see time at first base and is next in line behind O'Kelly and Vandiver in the pitching circle, while Gailey will compete for playing time in the outfield.

The Warriors' freshman class consists of Gabby Whiddon, Rachel Carter, Kate Sartain, and Yvonne Minutello.

Whiddon and Carter are both in line for extensive playing time with the varsity squad.

Whiddon has been a starter in the outfield in both regular season games and the preseason scrimmage, and has hit at the top of the lineup in the both regular season games. Carter can play anywhere on the field, and has started at first base, second base and right field in the first three games.

“We're throwing a couple of 14-year-olds to the wolves,” Owens said with a laugh. “They have to learn how to play at this level, but they can be really good players.

The start of the region portion of the schedule is still a few weeks away, but when league play begins, the Lady Warrior will be doing battle with a new batch of teams.

After spending the past few years in Region 7-AAAA with Marist, Blessed Trinity, Denmark, Flowery Branch, Chestatee and West Hall, WCHS finds itself in Region 7-AAA. They will share the new region with West Hall, North Hall, Cherokee Bluff, Dawson County,  Gilmer County and Lumpkin County.

“This is a good region, and there are some good teams in this league,” Owens said. “Lumpkin County was an Elite Eight team last year and made it to Columbus. Cherokee Bluff is young program, but they are good and they have such a big player pool to draw from in Hall County. Dawson County does a phenomenal job, and North Hall should be good too.”

Owens said moving from a region filled with two private school powers and another large school power in Denmark should be beneficial.

“Not having to play the private schools is good thing,” Owens said. “We would have to get out of school at 2, and then drive down there, play the game and then get home at 11. That's hard on a school night. The logistics of our new region is better, and that's a big thing for us. I think there have been times in the past where we were defeated before we got on the bus. In this region, we feel like we will be able to go out and compete and have a chance to excel. That's all you can ask for.”

JV Lady Warriors

The junior varsity squad also opened the season this week, dropping a pair of games to Habersham Central and Union County.

Members of the junior varsity squad are Gailey, Thomas, Garrett, Turner, Sartain, Minutello, Kayton Eller, Pipa Martin, Sarah Partain, Brianna Ramey, Carley Magness, Emma Hare, Hailey Ramey, Aubrey Bolton, Kiannah Dorsey, Lauren Black, and Ginger Lewis.