Jenna Lilley and her North Canton (Ohio) Hoover Vikings team are deep into the playoffs as they try to make it an amazing four straight state titles.

“But we’re not looking that far ahead,” the senior cautions. “We are looking to play not one game, not one inning, but one pitch at a time.

The Buckeye State star was named as the No. 1 prospect in the Class of 2014 after she hit .697 as a junior and was named the Ohio State Player of the Year and a MaxPreps All-American last season.

She has committed to the Univ. of Oregon and is also excellent in the classroom with a 3.9 GPA.

Click here to read Jenna’s earlier blogs and those from our other standout players!

Learn more about Jenna and her athletic family in this piece by her mother, Debbie, called A parent’s perspective: softball sacrifices

See our video interview of mother and daughter shot last summer at PGF

 

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Luckily, it is now officially summer for me! No more exams, tests, or homework to do until mid August and I am sure glad about that.

With that, high school regular season has wound down, and playoffs are just starting up hot. My team got a bye, and two wins in the sectional final and district semi final. We played in the district semi last night and we play for the district final next as we look to make it four straight state titles

But we’re not looking that far ahead: we are looking to play not one game, not one inning, but one pitch at a time.

While watching college softball on ESPN (the great battle between ASU and Michigan, which UM won on a catch at the wall that prevented a winning walk-off home run), it really blew my mind how one pitch can change a game, just like that.

I also enjoyed watching how none of the players on either team ever gave up, no matter the score. Both teams battled, pitch by pitch.

Our record is 23-3 so far. We’ve had a couple of losses this year, but all we can really do (once the game is over) is learn from them. We are doing our best to take those negatives and turn them into positives for our future games.

My team has played a really tough schedule this year so we could learn from playing some of the best competition in the state. Playing those respectable teams made for some fun, intense games.

By playing good teams in the regular season, It was also a really good test to see how we could handle situations in bigger games. Sometimes things went well, others not so much. But by playing that caliber in the regular season, it really helped to give us an idea and perspective of what level we have to be at mentally and physically.

Rebounding from those losses, have made us stronger players and a stronger ONE. We now look to carry those new learning lessons into the post season.

For me, I can’t believe my senior year is over. I also can’t believe it is already post season. I am looking forward to summer ball, but I’m even more excited about the moment I’m in now with my high school team and high school season.

I wish everyone the best of luck in the post season!

As always,

Jenna