Softball is having a moment
Move over, boys of summer, because these girls can ball.
Lowcountry summers have long led to intoxication with the prowess of area all-star baseball teams, many of whom have ventured from Hilton Head, Beaufort, or Bluffton to various DYB World Series in far-off locales like Hattiesburg or Shreveport to represent the Palmetto State, the Lowcountry, and their hometowns.
The state champs have hailed from the Lowcountry frequently enough over the years to consider it a hotbed for youth baseball talent, and that has been borne out in recent years with a rash of state championships and deep playoff runs from area high school teams, as well as a flood of area players advancing on to play at the next level, including a handful who have climbed all the way to the big leagues.
Without doubt, the all-star teams from Hilton Head and Bluffton are set to field juggernaut squads again this summer, a product of strong rec leagues coupled with travel teams that allow the most talented and dedicated players to continue training and playing after the brief rec season is complete.
For the first time, we’re seeing the same energy from the local softball community. Sure, there have been pockets of success and plenty of outstanding players who found their way to regional travel teams and navigated a mostly uncharted path to playing in college, but the infrastructure to develop quality players on a larger scale is just now taking shape.
Bluffton’s rec softball leagues have seen a massive boom in recent seasons, and Beaufort is blazing up the same path and trying to close the gap. Hilton Head is fighting to get its youth softball program off the ground at the same time Hilton Head Prep and Hilton Head Christian Academy launched high school programs. Travel teams are proliferating at an almost alarming rate as girls fall in love with the sport and families scramble to keep up with the Joneses.
All of this comes at a prime time for the sport of softball, which is kind of having a moment.
Tennessee pitcher Karlyn Pickens stayed viral this spring by continuously breaking her own record for the fastest pitch ever — topping out at 79.4mph in the Women’s College World Series; the equivalent of 110mph from a regulation baseball mound — and that still wasn’t enough to get the Vols to the championship.
From Texas’ Mia Scott blasting home runs and taking away hits at third base with a torn ACL to Texas Tech’s NiJaree Canady carrying an upstart program on her shoulders all the way to the brink of a title to Nebraska’s Jordy Bahl dominating in the circle and at the plate, college softball has become a sport in which every little girl can see someone who looks like her making spectacular plays and having a blast doing it.
And now, just as our girls are getting their chance in the spotlight, so to are their idols. With the launch of the Athletes Unlimited Softball League, today’s college stars are set to be tomorrow’s pros, and with the recent announcement that Major League Baseball will provide significant financial backing to support the league, our girls’ diamond dreams will know no bounds.
The 12-and-under softball all-stars are in action this week at Burton Wells Park in Beaufort, and the district champs will advance to the state tournament along with last weekend’s winning 8-and-under and 10-and-under teams from Bluffton.
How far they go from here is largely up to them, but they should have our support every step of the way. Because these girls can play.
Justin Jarrett is the sports editor of The Island News and is the founder of Lowco Sports. He has a passion for sports and community journalism and a questionable sense of humor.
