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More softball greatness, new track personal bests highlight Gaylord-area top performers

dylan jespersen, the petoskey news-review
·4 min read

GAYLORD — The weather is heating up, the games are starting to mean more and the top athletes from around the Gaylord area are starting put up some of their most impressive performances.

It must be May.

We are now just a few short weeks away from the beginning of the end of the 2023-24 school year as girls soccer and track get set to kick off the spring postseason. Still, with time left to make their marks on the regular season, athletes from Gaylord, St. Mary and Johannesburg-Lewiston continue to put up impressive numbers as their respective conference schedules roll on.

Who had the best week around Otsego County? Find out in this week's edition of Top Performers:

Softball

Aubrey Jones, Gaylord

Aubrey Jones launched two home runs in a 10-2 victory over TC Central on Wednesday, May 8.
Aubrey Jones launched two home runs in a 10-2 victory over TC Central on Wednesday, May 8.

We start with softball here in Gaylord, and no matchup from this past week had bigger implications than the Big North Conference doubleheader between the top-ranked Blue Devils and Traverse City Central. With Dayton-commit Camryn Craig in the circle for the Trojans, the Gaylord lineup wasn't as dominant as you would expect against a conference opponent.

Aubrey Jones still was just as dominant.

Jones went a perfect 3-for-3 from the plate against her summer ball teammate Craig, homering twice while driving in four runs and scoring four. She followed that up with a no-hitter from the circle in game two, striking out 10 batters en route to a 10-0 victory.

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Jayden Marlatt, Johannesburg-Lewiston

Jayden Marlatt continues to dominate as the softball postseason rapidly approaches.
Jayden Marlatt continues to dominate as the softball postseason rapidly approaches.

Days, weeks and now months have gone by and we are still searching for a Division 4 team that can compete with JoBurg.

Now 20-0 to start the season and No. 2 in the Michigan High School Softball Coaches Association rankings, Ferris State signee Jayden Marlatt continues to be the driving force behind their success. In another 4-0 week, Marlatt went 6-for-10 with a home run, two doubles, six RBI and five runs scored while earing two wins from the circle with no earned runs and 16 strikeouts.

Baseball

Aidan Locker, Gaylord

Aidan Locker had a hit in all four games Gaylord played this week, helping GHS earn four-straight victories.
Aidan Locker had a hit in all four games Gaylord played this week, helping GHS earn four-straight victories.

It was also a successful week for the Gaylord baseball team, finishing 4-0 after two wins at TC Central and another two in an exhibition doubleheader with the Soo Black Sox.

Senior Aidan Locker had a hit in all four games, going 5-for-12 with five RBI, one run scored and three stolen bases in the four-game winning streak. He also earned a save after his two innings of scoreless work in the game-two victory over TC Central.

Collin Lake, Johannesburg-Lewiston

JoBurg head coach Cody Proctor got a call at 3:45 p.m. that his catcher, Collin Lake, was cleared to play in the 4:00 p.m. game at Gaylord St. Mary on Tuesday, May 7. Lake went on to have a huge impact in the Cardinals' 7-5 win, going 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored from the plate while throwing out two base stealers throughout the game, including a 'strike him out, throw him out' double play on for the final outs of the win.

Rylan Rosso, Johannesburg-Lewiston

Lake wasn't the only reliable bat that helped JoBurg to the big Ski Valley Conference win on Tuesday; Rylan Rosso was also all over the box score, going 3-for-4 with a double and three RBI in the victory.

Track and field

Katie Berkshire, Gaylord

Katie Berkshire (right) set a new personal best time in the 800-meter run this week.
Katie Berkshire (right) set a new personal best time in the 800-meter run this week.

One of the top distance runners in Division 2, Berkshire set another new personal record in the 800-meter run on Tuesday, May 7 with a time of 2 minutes, 22.60 seconds.

Connor Byram, Gaylord

Working towards his final throws of the season, junior Connor Byram set a new personal best distance in the shot put with a toss of 46 feet, 10 inches.

Mirriam Murrell, Gaylord St. Mary

The leader of GSM track and field, senior Mirriam Murrell put up her best 3200-meter time of the season, winning the East Jordan Invite small schools division with a time of 12 minutes 1.80 seconds. That time would've been good enough to win the large schools division by over 50 seconds.

Contact GHT Sports Editor Dylan Jespersen at Djespersen@gaylordheraldtimes.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @dylanjespersen, and Instagram, @dylanjespersen

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Softball greatness, new track PR's highlight Gaylord-area top performers