Jefferson County continues to churn out top softball talent.
This fall was no exception, as three schools from the Jefferson County Activities Association produced four all-state players.
Jefferson junior Abi Chipps was selected to the Class 2 all-state team for the third straight season. Chipps was a first-teamer in 2016 when the Blue Jays finished third in the state, on the second team in 2017 and moved back to the first team this fall.
Hillsboro seniors Emma Nichols (first team) and Kelsey Boyd (second team) are both back on the Class 3 all-state team for the Hawks for the second straight season. Boyd was a first teamer in 2017; Nichols earned a spot on the second squad. Both are on the JCAA first team.
Festus junior Abigail Rickermann earned her first all-state selection this fall after breaking the school record for career steals with 93.
“We have one of the best softball conferences in the state from top to bottom,” St. Pius X head coach Kevin Halley said. “There’s a lot of high-end quality depth.”
Three Tigers – Rickermann (infield) and seniors Cailey McFadden (pitcher) and Erica Fletcher (outfield) – were selected to the league’s first team this season. McFadden split the Player of the Year award in the conference with Nichols. Festus head coach Jeff Montgomery was chosen as the Coach of the Year by his peers. The Tigers were the top seed in the Class 3 District 2 tournament, but were upset by De Soto in the semifinals and finished 11-9.
Montgomery is the only head coach Festus softball has ever had. He’s also the school’s baseball coach and has earned Coach of the Year honors between the two sports at least five times. The Tigers won the league championship, as did the school’s football, boys and girls cross country teams and girls volleyball squad.
“It was a really unique season. We had so many injuries and adversity early in the year,” Montgomery said. “Our success was a credit to the kids. They really came together and we coached them really hard. They just responded. I don’t think we were the best team, but when we had to we played the best and competed really well.
“I still love it. I show up every day and the challenges of being a coach really motivate me. Making those relationships with the athletes and coaches is a rewarding experience. I get back a lot. The softball program is dear to me. It started out with nothing and we’ve turned it into a very respected program.”
McFadden won 28 games in the circle the last three seasons and was 10-3 in 71 2/3 innings this year. At the plate this season, she hit .362 and knocked in 15 runs. McFadden hasn’t signed to play in college, but a local school has shown interest, Montgomery said.
“Cailey’s a very hard-nosed competitor and we’ll miss that,” Montgomery said. “She did things the last four years that put the team on her shoulders. I was glad she got that recognition. She was undefeated in the conference. With her in the circle, she shut down people when she had to.”
Rickermann is the silky smooth Festus shortstop who led the Tigers with a .545 batting average. She also drew 12 walks and was hit by four pitches. She has 84 hits the past two seasons.
“She’s an outstanding player who makes everyone around her better,” Montgomery said. “She may be the best player in the conference and has been for two years. She can do so many things offensively and defensively.”
Fletcher patrolled right field for Festus this season, hit .450 and stole nine bags. Montgomery said she had a fine high school career.
“She played outstanding defensively and slapped the ball to the left side,” Montgomery said. “She gets the most out of her ability and we’ll miss her leading by example.”
Three Owls on first-team
Windsor senior Jessica Veselske will attend Jefferson College next fall on a scholarship after finishing as the Owls’ career leader in home runs (21) and RBIs (141).
Veselske batted .429, .539, .474 and .539 from her freshman through senior year and has 45 career doubles. Like McFadden, she was a dual threat, and the first-team pitcher won 26 games and struck out 246 batters in her career.
Windsor head coach Wayne Montgomery, Jeff’s brother, said Veselske will pitch for the Vikings and head coach Tony Cook.
“She’s an athlete who can play any position,” Wayne Montgomery said. “People notice her power level, but she’s fast as well and she’s a threat in a lot of ways. She’s a competitor in the circle. Whoever she pitches for, she’ll give them an opportunity to win.”
Sophomores Payton Irwin (infield) and Piper Montgomery (catcher) made the league’s first team and represent the future for the Owls, who were 12-10 and lost 5-4 to Hillsboro in the District 2 semifinals.. Montgomery said Irwin is one of the best defensive infielders in the JCAA and she had an on-base percentage of .590 and batted .424 with seven doubles and 20 RBIs. She was plunked by 11 pitches this year.
“What stuck out the most was her fielding,” Montgomery said. “She’s one of the best defensive infielders in the conference. She has good speed and her on-base percentage was eye-popping. At one time she was leading the St. Louis area (in on-base percentage). She batted in front of Jessica, and had a knack for getting hit.”
Piper Montgomery, Wayne’s niece, shared first-team catcher honors with Jefferson sophomore Catryn Cattoor. Piper threw out 13 of 17 runners and called Windsor’s pitches from behind the plate. She batted .406 with 21 RBIs.
“She is one of the top defensive catchers in the St. Louis area,” Wayne Montgomery said. “When you have catchers who can’t throw anybody out, that puts extra strain on the pitcher. Her and Jessica worked well together. She’s a smart kid. When you’ve got a weapon like that, teams won’t run on her.
“She turned it on at the end of the year at the plate. She’s going to have power numbers in the future. It’s nice to have team players like we had this year.”
One for the Agers
After winning the Class 2 District 4 title in 2016 and 2017, St. Pius X was moved to District 2 this fall. The Lancers (10-10-1) beat Saxony Lutheran 6-5 in eight innings in the first round before losing to eventual district champion Kelly in the semifinals.
Sophomore A.J. Agers was selected as a first-team pitcher for St. Pius after she posted a record of 10-7 with a 1.81 ERA. More remarkable, Agers fanned 151 batters in 96 2/3 innings. In her first two seasons at the plate, Agers has 47 RBIs, 17 doubles and 20 stolen bases.
In just two seasons, Agers has established herself as the top female athlete at St. Pius.
“She gets a good amount of strikeouts against some really good teams,” Halley said. “The biggest thing with her is her demeanor. She doesn’t get flustered when things don’t go well. We had some bad games in the field behind her but she keeps a solid head. Her riseball worked a little, but she’s got a really good screwball and her drop ball was her out pitch. She ended up calling her own pitches this season.
“For two straight years I’ve just typed her into the three spot in the lineup. She has good at-bats and very rarely gets herself out.”
Salty Chipps on first team for third time in three years
Chipps has 110 stolen bases in three years. If she steals 12 more next fall, she’ll move into fifth place in state history. With 26 steals her senior year, Chipps would be in third place. Lamar’s Stephanie Standley (1998-2001) holds the state record with 206.
Chipps has been a first teamer on the all-JCAA squad all three seasons she’s played. She scored the game-winning run for the Blue Jays when they finished third in Class 2 in 2016 and has batted over .600 the last two years.
“You get excited as a program when you’re talking about state records,” said Jefferson head coach Robert Kuehnle. “It doesn’t even register for (Chipps). She works her tail off. When I tell her about this, she’ll say, ‘Oh, cool.’ To be honest, she just wants to play softball.
“When I first started coaching softball, I wasn’t impressed with the slap. When I saw Abby do it in games, I was mesmerized how she could place the ball where she wants to. To have that is something invaluable as a coach and team.”
Cattoor had 16 extra-base hits, hit .475 and had team highs in home runs (3) and RBIs (28) to go with her 17 stolen bases. She only threw out 12 of 55 base runners behind the plate, but Kuehnle said the low rate is deceiving.
“It was to the point that nobody just stole on her,” Kuehnle said. “All of her throws were contested. I’ve never had a catcher to shut down the run game like she has. In first and third situations, we’d throw to second because we knew we could get the girl on third coming home.”
Kuehnle said throwing batting practice to Cattoor, even with the protection of a screen, is scary.
“She popped a hole in the screen,” he said. “She’s a monster in batting practice. She always asked for extra batting practice. When she was done, I breathed a sigh of relief.”
Two De Soto seniors make first team for first time
The Dragons were the last seed (No. 5) going into the Class 3 District 2 tournament, but upset top-seeded Festus and advanced to the championship game.
De Soto (16-12) lost that game to Hillsboro, but seniors Evelyn Boyer and Tricia Mae Charleville concluded superb careers with all-conference performances. Charleville was the winning pitcher against the Tigers in districts and finished 8-7 in the circle. Charleville has signed to play softball at Jefferson College. She was selected to the first team as a utility player. She played most of the season with a torn gluteus minumus. First-year head coach Chris Woelich said he was astounded when he found out Charleville played the season with that type of injury.
“Given how successful she was, it was incredible she was able to overcome that,” Woelich said of Charleville, who batted .367 and can play any position in the infield.
“The biggest compliment I can pay to Tricia is she’s a pitcher,” Woelich said. “She doesn’t blow everybody away, but she does change speeds and move the ball up and down.”
While Charleville was assigned most of the key matchups in the circle, Boyer also won eight games and had two more strikeouts (68). Boyer missed all of 2017 with an injured knee. She played third base this year and hit .363 with 11 runs batted in.
“I asked Evelyn to play third base which she hadn’t played before,” Woelich said. “She only made a couple of errors there. She had clutch hits this season. So between that and her defense, this was a great place to reward her time and effort.”
Boyd, Nichols cap stellar careers with state finish
Hillsboro reached the Class 3 state final four in Springfield this year and finished fourth in the state.
The Hawks won 47 games the past two seasons and Boyd and Nichols were on the forefront of that success. Boyd’s home run power and Nichols’ left arm in the circle were their calling cards. Boyd smashed 23 home runs in 2017 and 2018 and Nichols hurled three straight shutouts in the district final, sectionals and quarterfinals.
Nichols will continue her softball career at the University of Missouri in Columbia and local softball fans will get a chance to see Boyd at Jefferson College, winners of 86 games the last two years.
“The goal is to prepare them to compete at the next level,” Hillsboro head coach Kevin Lucas said. “Emma signing with Mizzou is awesome for her. She gets to play in the (Southeastern Conference) for a top program. She had a great year for us. She stepped up as a team leader this year from the very first practice. Her and Kelsey took charge and that’s what we needed this year after the (graduation) losses from our last two teams.”