Who are the top 5 softball players in Livingston County entering 2024?

OK, Pinckney, don’t make me look bad.

The 2024 preseason list of top five softball players in Livingston County includes three Pirates.

Each player has accomplishments worthy of making the list, but I’m often gun-shy about loading up a list of players from a team that hasn’t won any recent championships.

Meanwhile, Hartland is the defending state Division 1 champion and has only one player on this list. That makes me a little uncomfortable, too.

But, based on who is returning from last year’s all-county first team, these are the top five players heading into the season. The list doesn’t include a sure-fire top-five player in Howell shortstop Addison Caldwell, who is out for the season with an injury.

That’s not to say the list can’t change drastically if other players emerge, something that has happened frequently in other sports. The example that sticks out the most is Brighton basketball player Ashton Tomassi, who wasn’t even mentioned in my 2021-22 team previews, but wound up being the Player of the Year.

1. CeCe Thorington

► School: Pinckney

► Class: Senior

► Position: Center field

► Accomplishments: Thorington, a Division 2 first-team all-stater who has signed with the University of Michigan, will go down as the top player in Pinckney history and one of the state’s best base stealers ever. The state track and field qualifier has stolen 84 consecutive bases, giving her a shot at the state record of 122 set by Lake Orion’s Tessa Nuss from 2016-19. Thorington has 141 steals and 168 runs in three seasons. As a junior, she led the county with a .589 average, had 60 steals, 68 runs and six triples.

► Coach Eric Arnold: “She starts us off in our lead-off spot and sets the tone for us. Defensively, she’s the captain of our outfield. I’m not worried with balls hit to the outfield; anywhere near her, it’s a catch. Offensively, she’s worked on adding some more power this year. Her speed is unbelievable. She’s really smart on the bases and an all-around fantastic player.”

2. Tori Briggs

► School: Fowlerville

► Class: Senior

► Positions: Pitcher, shortstop

► Accomplishments: Briggs, who has signed with Central Michigan University, will be ready to go for the start of the season after missing most of basketball season following ankle surgery. She has hit over .500 and made first-team all-county each of her three seasons. During her career, Briggs is hitting .548 with 39 doubles, 15 triples, 16 homers, 121 RBIs and 159 runs. She was 7-5 as a pitcher last year with 98 strikeouts and a 2.14 ERA.

► Coach Brad Ryan: “She’s the first D1 softball player we’ve had at Fowlerville, so that’s pretty big. The injury hurt her, but her spin rate is much improved from last year and she’s confident on the mound. Going into the year, she’s not thinking, ‘I have to pitch.’ She’s looking forward to it this year.”

3. Kate McIntyre

► School: Hartland

► Class: Senior

► Position: First base

► Accomplishments: McIntyre was the leading hitter on Hartland’s state championship team, batting .440 with 42 runs, eight homers, five triples and 14 steals to earn first-team all-state. She made huge improvement after hitting .264 with 13 runs as a sophomore. After hitting .267 through nine games last season, McIntyre, who signed with Ave Maria University in Florida, heated up and went .495 the rest of the season against a tough schedule.

► Coach Taylor Wagner: “She does everything well. She’s one of the best athletes on the team. She’s had a lot of pressure on her shoulders being pretty much a starter since her freshman year. She’s always the girl who is going to calm everybody down, bring them together and just show everybody what to do through her play. She’s that kind of leader.”

4. MacKenzie Burns

► School: Pinckney

► Class: Junior

► Position: Left field, third base

► Accomplishments: Burns is attracting some Division I college interest after placing in the top six in the county in the triple crown categories as a sophomore. Burns hit .471 to rank fifth in the county, hit seven homers to rank third and drove in 36 runs to tie for sixth. She also had 13 doubles and scored 30 runs.

► Coach Eric Arnold: “She’s even got more power this year. She’s really worked at it. She’s going to sign with a big-time school. She has a solid arm in the outfield. She’s worked really hard to play some third base for us. She’s just a smart player.”

SOFTBALL PREVIEW: What's the outlook for Livingston County's 2024 softball teams?

5. Mallory Dickey

► School: Pinckney

► Class: Senior

► Position: Second base

► Accomplishments: Like Thorington, Dickey is also a standout on Pinckney’s track and field team during the spring. Dickey also put her wheels to use on the bases, stealing 32 bases last year to rank second in the county and scoring 40 runs to tie for fourth. Dickey, who signed with the University of Findlay, hit .391 and drove in 32 runs.

► Coach Eric Arnold: “She’s a solid defender. She makes the plays that need to be made, makes the plays that sometimes are not makeable. She has solid speed on the bases. She’s just an awesome complement from CeCe leading off to Mallory batting second.”

Contact Bill Khan at wkhan@gannett.com. Follow him on X @BillKhan

This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Who are the top 5 softball players in Livingston County entering 2024?