Coley leads Lady Kavs softball honorees
Published 10:59 am Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Kenston Forest School Head Coach was named the 2019 VISAA Division III State Softball Coach of the Year.
Kenston Forest School’s varsity softball team was represented among the 2019 VISAA Division III all-state honorees by, from left, sophomore Berkley Rose, who made the second team, and eighth-grader Mackenzie Newcomb, junior Peyton Coleman, sophomore Molly Epperson and freshman Shelby Gunn, each of whom made the first team. Epperson and Coleman also made the All-VCC first team, while Newcomb made the second team. Not pictured is senior Rachel Moore, who made the VCC All-Academic Team.
The conference tournament and state tournament champion Kenston Forest School varsity softball team drew a combined 10 awards between the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association (VISAA) Division III All-State accolades and the All-Virginia Colonial Conference (VCC) honors. Headlining the collection of awards was Lady Kavaliers Head Coach Jannon Coley, who was named VISAA Division III State Softball Coach of the Year.
“It meant a lot,” she said of the honor. “I think it was a wonderful thing to happen, and I’m very grateful, very blessed by it. I can’t take the credit for that, though. I’ll tell you, the girls did that. So, I’m very proud of them for it.”
The Lady Kavs successfully navigated Coley’s trademark busy schedule, finishing 26-7 overall.
This is her first state-level Coach of the Year accolade.
Kenston Forest players making the all-state first team were junior Peyton Coleman, sophomore Molly Epperson, freshman Shelby Gunn and eighth-grader Mackenzie Newcomb. Sophomore Berkley Rose made the second team.
Epperson and Coleman made the All-VCC first team, Newcomb made the second team, and senior Rachel Moore was named to the VCC All-Academic Team.
Coley expressed disappointment in how little her team was represented among the conference awards.
Of the all-state honors her players received, Coley said she felt “a little bit better than conference. But I will say this — I feel like we should have had maybe one or two more that should have been first team and maybe one second team …”
The coach noted that Coleman stood out to award voters because of her field presence and well-rounded, speedy game that achieved a .407 batting average and 30 stolen bases.
Epperson shined as a hitter and a catcher. She batted .437 on offense and had 145 putouts and 13 assists on defense.
Newcomb had the highest batting average on her team, hitting .489. She also showed versatility on defense, playing outfielder and pitcher.
Gunn was outstanding in the circle this year, consistently limiting opposing team’s offenses.
Rose led the Lady Kavs with 44 stolen bases, and she batted .392.