Sophomores Meghan Davis, Rachel Kubrak, Kayla Posten and Amelia Sims are hoping to repeat the success they had in the 2016 season.
To call Cherry Hill High School West’s 2016 softball team young may have been a bit of an understatement.
Nearly half of the Lions regular starters last year were freshmen. Ninth graders Meghan Davis, Rachel Kubrak, Kayla Posten and Amelia Sims all received regular playing time in their first high school season.
After a slow start to the season, the Lions’ four freshmen helped lead the team to a strong finish in 2016. Cherry Hill West won four of their final seven games in 2016, including a shocking upset win over №1 seed Cumberland Regional High School in the first round of the South Jersey Group III playoffs.
Now, with a year of experience under their belts, the four sophomores feel the Lions have the talent to lift the team to a winning record in 2017.
“There’s a lot of pressure to do what we did last year,” Kubrak said.
The sophomore quartet has been playing together for a little while. All four of them were on the Carusi Middle School softball team prior to high school, and some of them, such as Davis and Posten, have been playing together since their childhoods.
“Kayla and I have known each other since we were 5 or 6,” Davis said.
All four players brings a unique skill set to the field, but one thing they have in common is they’re strong at the plate. Davis emerged as a strong power hitter, leading the Lions with six home runs. Kubrak had multiple four-hit games and became the Lions’ leadoff hitter. Posten had a batting average above .300 and also had multiple four-hit games. Sims would end up starting in the outfield for the Lions and hit just below .300 for the season.
“I don’t look at the year that they graduate, I look at their talent,” head coach Melissa Franzosi said. “All four of them stood out from the beginning, especially at the bat.”
Last season’s Cherry Hill West lineup was a mixture of young players and strong, experienced seniors. Franzosi said it took a little while for the team chemistry to come together. The team was 4–10 entering a May 10 road game against Cherokee, and the Lions were in danger of missing the playoffs.
“Going into the Cherokee game, things started falling into place,” Franzosi said. “We had a big talk before that. We said that there was so much talent on this team, we’re making playoffs. And they did it.”
Cherry Hill West upset a Cherokee team that went on to win 15 games last season. The victory paved the way for the Lions’ upset win over 18–3 Cumberland in the playoffs’ opening round.
This year, the four sophomores enter the season expecting to improve on their solid 2016 debut.
“I think we’re going to start off more confident,” Sims said. “There’s so much potential. We can only get better from here.”
The Lions will have to replace a few key players this season. Cherry Hill West lost starters such as Arcilia Hernandez, Becca Gurst and Elena Vaughan to graduation. The four sophomores, along with seniors Jade Stubblefield and Angela LaRosa, are the returning veterans on this year’s team.
“Some of the younger players are looking up to us now to guide them,” Posten said.
Franzosi said the expectations are definitely higher this year with a strong core back this season.
“We’re going to work together to be competitive from the first game,” she said.
