Sophomore pitcher Hailey Bayne has headlined the Central High School varsity softball team’s postseason accolades, first making the All-Conference 42 first team and then being named to the All-Region 1A East second team.

“I was extremely excited for her,” Lady Chargers Head Coach Karen McGrath said of learning about Bayne’s regional honor. “She’s very deserving of this. … She, as a freshman, made all-region second team, as well, so I’m looking forward to seeing what she’s going to accomplish in the next couple of years.”

Bayne finished this season with approximately 150 strikeouts and 28 putouts, which includes ball hits to her and bunts.

“She was responsible for roughly 178 outs this season,” McGrath said. “She was our main pitcher. She did everything. She pitched every game — 136 total innings.”

Bayne had an earned run average of 1.75. There were 82 runs scored against her, but only 34 of them were earned.

Her final record in the circle for the season was the same as the team’s final overall record — 7-15.

“The record in no way reflects how good our team is,” McGrath said after noting that the Lady Chargers lost four games by only one run.

In another game, they were ahead when the game was suspended permanently due to lightning.

Since the Virginia High School League rule says to revert to the last completed inning for a final score in that circumstance, it ended up being a loss for Central, which had successfully mounted a comeback.

Among the major highlights for the season, “we beat Goochland (High School) at Goochland 2-1, which is huge to beat them over there,” McGrath said. “We haven’t beat Goochland on their home field in … probably at least three years.”

The Lady Chargers, who finished as the runner-up in the conference, lost 3-2 in the regional quarterfinals to Windsor High School.

Along with Bayne, three other Central players received all-conference honors, as senior catcher Meri Dalton, senior utility player Kayla Anthony and sophomore outfielder Kaylee Williams made the second team. “Each and every one of those girls were very deserving,” McGrath said.

She noted Dalton had the highest batting average on the team and the highest number of putouts.

Anthony was in her third straight season on the varsity team and was a strong captain with Dalton, and Williams had a perfect fielding percentage in center field.