High school softball: Avon Eagles Anna Edwards named county player of year again

Anna Edwards may have graduated, but her high school resume received one last bullet point.

On June 9, Edwards was named the Lorain County Coaches Association Senior Player of the Year. The Avon senior was also named Lorain County Miss Softball one week ago.

‘It’s been one of my goals to win both of them,’ Edwards said. ‘I did and I’m really excited.’

Edwards was also named the Lorain County Division I Pitcher of the Year, recording a 10-5 record, 1.48 ERA and 100 strikeouts in the circle. At the plate, she batted .383 for 22 RBI and 23 runs this season. She received West Shore Conference Player of the Year, first team WSC, scholar athlete and Northeast District Honorable Mention honors.

Edwards said her favorite moment from her senior season was beating WSC rival Midview for the third time. Avon finished first atop the WSC, its first conference championship in 39 years.

‘It was probably our toughest game of the season,’ Edwards recalled. ‘It was just an all-around team effort, everyone contributed.’

‘It was hard because I thought that was going to be the end of my season.’

Edwards will continue her playing career at Otterbein while studying systems engineering. Her successful high school career has her feeling optimistic.

‘It just gives me more confidence and I’m just excited to hopefully win some more in college,’ she said.

Edwards received her award before the 2015 Lorain County All-Star game at Wellington Community Park.

Two teams of seniors, divided into Red and Purple, competed one last time on the diamond as the Red team won, 5-4, in a nine-inning contest.

The Red team took a two-run lead in the third inning as a pair of fielding errors, a sacrifice fly to center by North Ridgeville’s Ashley Helmink and a single by Firelands’ Alexis Shick gave the Red team the 2-0 edge.

One more touched the plate for the Red team in the fourth inning as another fielding error proved costly. Elyria’s Angelique Prunty reached on an error and scored during a rundown during which Elyria’s Madison Fullmer singled and was caught between first and second before safely returning to first.

The Purple team rallied for three runs in the fifth.

Edwards led off with a single, part of a 2-for-3 evening at the plate. Keystone’s Liz Hayes reached on an error and Avon’s Ally Sumser doubled home Edwards. Midview’s Trish Koleski doubled to center for two RBI to even the score at three.

The Avon duo accumulated another run in the seventh inning as Edwards singled to center and scored on a single by Sumser. Edwards also pitched two innings, surrendering one run on three hits and two stirkeouts. Amherst’s Zoe Beetler and Oberlin’s Hannah Rasmussen also pitched for the Purple Team.

After Vermilion’s Jennifer Kovarik singled and scored on Anna Daly’s single, the Red team tied the score at four.

Cue Columbia’s Kailey Minarchick, who doubled home Clearview’s Erin Isenberg for the go-ahead run in the eighth inning. Minarchick ended her evening in the circle, striking out the side in the ninth to secure the Red team’s win.

‘I think it went really good,’ Minarchick said of the game. ‘My catchers, even though I didn’t know them very well, they did very good.’

Isenberg also spent some time in the circle for the Red Team.

‘It was definitely an adventure,’ Isenberg said. ‘I hadn’t pitched in about a month. … It was fun. It was definitely a challenge but it was fun.’

Daly, who recorded two hits and an RBI, said the experience of playing with the area’s best players was a special experience to end her high school career.

‘It’s like an honor,’ Daly said. ‘I feel like you always talk about, ‘Oh I know this person, I know that person,’ and then you’re like, ‘Oh my God, I’m playing on the field with this person.’ … It was very fun. I would definitely do all four years again and then play it again.’