Becca Augeri, Megan Chartier, Kaity Heck, Kylie Nichols, Randi Smith and Carlie Webb will forever be linked to making Lady Hornet softball relevant.
Since their freshman season when they nearly helped Gatesville qualify for its first-ever playoff trip, the six have matured as leaders while their success and personal relationships have grown.
“They’ve learned how to win,” said fifth-year coach Bartch, who will lead Gatesville (32-9) against Needville (33-8) at 7:30 p.m. today in a University Interscholastic League Class 3A state semifinal at Texas’ McCombs Field. Celina (36-5) and Longview Spring Hill (29-8) battle at 8:30 a.m. Friday in the second semifinal.
“They come to work every day. They do a lot of things right for us. They set the standard.”
During its senior playoff run that has involved robbery, mechanical problems with its bus, overtaking a rival and winning two Game 3s, this character-filled group has relied on its camaraderie, a closeness that didn’t exist as freshmen.
“Back when we all started out, I don’t think any of the six seniors really liked each other,” said Smith, who’s hitting .441 this season and holds school records with 45 doubles and nine home runs.
“I think now we’ve grown to love each other. When we go off to college, we’ll still stay in contact and we’ll all come back for some of these games and cheer on Emma (Emily Leib) and Amber (Colson) and everyone who is still here because we love them now. I think the team is more of a family now than it ever has been and I think that’s why we’ve gone so far.”
Said four-year starting shortstop Nichols: “It’s not really a selfish thing anymore. We’re cheering for each other. We’ve gotten really close.”
Along the way, each senior has contributed.
Chartier, nicknamed “Meg-O” or “Speedy,” stole three of her school-record 55 bases and scored twice during the Lady Hornets’ 2-0 Region I semifinal-clinching win over Levelland.
Slick-fielding Nichols (KB for Kylie Brook) drove in every run during Gatesville’s 4-1 win over District 7-3A nemesis West and has made several key defensive plays to thwart rallies.
Heck (“Rabbit”) delivered a triple in Game 1 against Fredericksburg and flipped the ball to Nichols for the final out in Game 2.
Augeri (“Lil’ Becs” because of her 5-1 height) went 5-for-5 in Game 3 against Burkburnett to win the area-round series.
The vocal leader, Smith (“Rambo” for her size and strength) has made several offensive and defensive plays but will always be remembered for her speech in Game 1 of Gatesville’s bi-district series against Wimberley.
After dropping the final two games of the regular season, the Lady Hornets made two errors, fell behind 2-0 in the first inning and their playoff run looked like it would be brief before third baseman Smith called the troops together.
“I said, ‘Just do your jobs. Just do what we’re supposed to do. Play like we’ve always played. We’re not going to let this happen again. We’re not going to lose right here, right now. We got this. Ya’ll just calm down,’” she said. “Everybody just went on from there. After that inning, we just played like we always do.”
Webb (“Webster”) is the team’s top courtesy runner and usually keeps the outspoken Smith in line.
Add in junior ace Emily Leib, who holds Gatesville’s single-season and career strikeout records and is hitting .412 this season, solid defensive play from catcher Colson and timely hitting from Cassie Morphet and the Lady Hornets have clicked when it’s counted most.
It’s been a memorable ride for sure, one no Gatesville player could have scripted. Tonight the Lady Hornets will try to write another chapter to the fairy tale season that seemed unfathomable just four years ago.
“My freshman year we weren’t even considering to be in the playoffs,” Augeri said. “It’s just shown we’ve come so far. There really is no words to describe it."
cmeister@temple-telegram.com
