Coyote softball wraps up another winning season

By Rick Mauch

Yet another winning season for the Weatherford College Coyotes softball team included a berth in the semifinals of the Region V Tournament and a milestone day for head coach Haylee Williams.

The Coyotes finished with an overall record of 27-22, including a comeback following a first-round loss at regionals.

After falling 2-1 in a heartbreaker to Temple, the Coyotes rebounded with a 10-1 win over Ranger and 8-4 over Vernon. However, the dream of a berth in the national tournament ended with a 5-0 loss to North Central Texas.

Among the season highlights was a special Wednesday afternoon on April 7. A sweep of Hill College, 3-2 and 8-0, were wins No. 299 and 300 for head coach Haylee Williams. She has been at the helm of the program since 2013, her first head coaching job, and has fashioned a 306-145 record. She was also named the North Texas Junior College Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 2017 and led the Coyotes to a national tournament berth in her first season.

"This season was challenging for multiple reasons, but it was also a lot of fun, and the program had some good growth internally," Williams said. "We will return half of our roster, but only two starters, so next year will look completely different.

After opening the season with a 9-2 record, the Coyotes stumbled starting in conference play, dropping seven of their first nine league contests. They rallied to finish with a 16-17 conference record.

The Coyotes featured an explosive offense that scored 10 or more runs eight times, including a season-high 20-18 win over McLennan. They also scored a dozen runs twice, 16 twice and 15 once.

Defensively, they surrendered one run or less 11 times, including four shutouts. They were shut out themselves only twice, ironically both against North Central Texas. The other was 3-0 during the regular season.

Coyotes season recap

• Record: 27-22
• Conference: 16-17
• Postseason: Advanced to semifinals of Region V Tournament
• Home record: 17-8
• Road record: 8-11
• Neutral record: 2-3
• Longest win streak: 4 (twice)
• Longest loss streak: 5
• Scored 10 or more runs: 8 times
• Surrendered 10 or more: 4
• Most runs in a game: 20-18 win over McLennan
• Shutouts: 4
• Surrendered 1 run or less: 11 times
• Times shutout: 2
• Team batting average: .309
• Team ERA: 4.11

Individual leaders

Hitting

• Batting average (minimum 75 at-bats) - Brooklyn Araujo, sophomore, .395; Prya Burns, freshman, .341; Stephanie Jimenez, sophomore, .313
• Doubles - Araujo, 18; Ayanna Williams, sophomore, 13; Burns, 7
• Triples - Williams, 4; Sierra Nixon, freshman, 4; Kailyne Luna, freshman, 2
• Home runs - Burns, 13; Jimenez, 9; Arauja, 7
• RBI - Burns, 40; Araujo, 39; Jimenez, 36; Williams, 36
• Walks drawn - Nixon, 24; Jimenez, 17; Williams, 13
• Stolen bases - Williams, 26 (28 attempts), Nixon, 12 (17); Araujo, 6 (8)
• On-base percentage (minimum 75 at-bats) - Williams, .468; Arajuo, .438; Nixon, .408
• Slugging percentage (minimum 75 at-bats) - Williams, .703; Burns, .674; Araujo, .673
• Hit by pitch - Williams, 8; Araujo, 4; Jimenez, 2; Nixon, 2; Luna, 2; Jesse Armstrong, freshman, 2
• Sacrifice flies - Jimenez, 4; Araujo, 2; Burns, 2; Nixon, 2
• Total bases - Araujo, 99; Burns, 93; Williams, 83
• Extra-base hits - Araujo, 26; Williams, 23; Burns, 20

Pitching

• Wins - Marcie Moss, freshman, 7-3; Teoni Lamb, freshman, 6-5; Destini Trahan, freshman, 3-2
• Saves - Emma Southerland, freshman, 1
• Innings - Lamb, 98.2; Moss, 84.2; Trahan, 42.2
• Fewest walks allowed (minimum 40 innings) - Lamb, 25; Moss, 26; Trahan, 35
• Strikeouts - Lamb, 83; Moss, 23; Sutherland, 18
• Average strikeouts per 7 innings - Lamb, 5.89; Sutherland, 3.37; Trahan, 2.46
• ERA - Sutherland, 3.75; Lamb, 3.83; Trahan, 4.27