Softball Report: Hagerty home runs set stage for Lake Howell reunion
It didn’t take long for Hagerty junior catcher Alexis Felker to surpass her home run total from a year ago.
Felker belted 3 homers, doubled and drove in 10 runs while going 4-for-4 last Wednesday during a 13-7 win vs. Orange City University (3-3-1).
That explosive effort came one week after she led the Huskies (6-1) to a 12-3 win against Viera (3-3) by going 3-for-4 with 2 home runs and 4 RBI.
Felker, who accounted for 4 home runs and 3 doubles as a designated player last spring, entered Monday’s outing at Lyman (2-3) batting .450 (9-for-20) with 6 extra-base hits in seven games.
“She had one or two games in a row where she didn’t feel right, so she came in an hour early to practice and took hundreds of swings off a tee,” first-year Hagerty coach Tom Kreahling said. “That Viera game was the very next day. She’s been putting in a lot of work and seeing immediate results.”
Felker is stepping up for a team that has five first-time varsity players among a roster that includes senior pitcher/infielder Rachel Matthiesen and juniors Ana Roman (OF), Lexi Beldowicz (SS) and Ella Verne (P).
Roman, an Alabama commit, was named the Orlando Sentinel Varsity player of the year after hitting .408 (31-for-76) and 16 home runs for the regional finalists. Beldowicz is a USF commit and Matthiesen is a Rollins College signee.
Kreahling leads the Huskies into familiar territory Tuesday as he makes his return to Lake Howell (6-2), where he spent the past 20 years as a teacher and coach. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
“There’s going to be some emotion on my end,” Kreahling said. “I don’t know what to expect. It’s my first time doing this.”
Kreahling went 274-150 in 16 seasons as head coach with the Silverhawks.
“I love where I’m at now, but I’m so proud of what we did over there during those years,” he said. “We graduated a lot of girls that went on to play college softball, won a handful of district titles and made it to some region finals.”
Hagerty plays at rival Oviedo (4-5) on Thursday. The upcoming schedule for the Huskies includes games at the Palm Harbor Tournament in Clearwater (March 22-23) and the annual Kissimmee Klassic from April 4-6.
Around the bases
Lake Mary senior Tegan Larrimore set a school record for career stolen bases March 5 when she swiped her 53rd bag during a 4-1 loss at Port Orange Spruce Creek (6-0). Kasey Fava set the previous mark of 52 career stolen bases with the Rams (3-3) in 2015.
First Academy-Leesburg 7th-grader Avery Keller went 6-for-6 with a triple and 4 runs scored and junior Alivia Collins finished 5-for-5 with 3 doubles last month during a 22-11 win at Wildwood (0-2). The Eagles are 2-3.
Senior Naya Rosario, an Orlando Christian Prep transfer, belted two home runs while going 5-for-5 with a double, 4 runs scored and 7 RBI for Cornerstone Charter (7-1) during a 21-7 win last week at The Geneva School (3-2).
Trinity Prep sophomore McKenna Hawley struck out 17 Geneva batters while allowing 3 hits, 4 walks and 3 earned runs during a 9-3 win. Hawley has 67 strikeouts in 33 innings for the Saints (4-2).
Sophomore Vanessa Nawracaj opened the season by going 2-for-4 with 2 RBI and recording 14 strikeouts for Freedom (2-5) during a 10-4 win at Cypress Creek (1-6). Nawracaj has retired 43 batters in 21⅓ innings while batting .467 (7-for-15) with 10 RBI and 4 extra-base hits.
St. Cloud sophomore Addison Felbinger had a single and RBI for the Bulldogs (5-2) and struck out 13 batters to secure a 2-1 win vs. rival Osceola (2-5). Felbinger is the reigning Orange Belt Conference player of the year.
This article originally appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email J.C. Carnahan at jcarnahan@orlandosentinel.com.
