Young Bulldogs Hungry for 2021 Success

Story by: Griffin Pritchard
Photos by: CA SCoreboard Staff

CENTRAL ALABAMA SCOREBOARD OFFICE — After finishing 2020 one win shy of .500, coach Jason Easterling knows his team has the potential to do something special. 

Easterling: “We have a very young team this season. With that said, we have four seniors that will be very important to our success. Maggie Mitchell, in my opinion, is one of the best pitchers in the state. She is a Bulldog in the circle and has great command of her pitches. She can dominate every game she pitches and never rattles.”

But she’s not the only Bulldog in the yard that’s going to play a big role this season. Larissa Corbett (rightfield) has been key at the plate and “has great swing mechanics that translate to the plate very well.” Courtney Haynie is the team’s “Jack of all Trades” and has played all over the field. Camryn Easterling is the lead ‘Dog. 

She’s also the coach’s kid. 

Easterling: “She’s a born leader and has taken on that role and the girls listen to her. She knows how I like to see things done and has been very important to me, with this being my first season. She is a natural outfielder but is stepping in to fill a hole at second base and is doing great.”

Easterling, the student-athlete, and the seniors have stepped up to lead the team this season. Easterling, the coach this time, quickly gives praise to his assistant coach Kristen Peek and Mallory Durbin. 

“I’m really fortunate to have two assistant coaches that enjoy the game and are great at creating relationships with players and coach the game on dirt very well,” said Easterling. 

No matter how much scheming and planning goes into the game from the coaching standpoint, it’s still based on how well the pitcher is throwing the ball. 

Easterling: “The game is called fastpitch softball. To me that means the most important person on the field is the pitcher. Maggie has been that go-to player for us thisseason. She has great command of her pitches and handles the bat well as well. She had a great 16 strikeout performance against Prattville Christian and came in against Opelika and threw five innings of perfect ball with 13 strikeouts.”

But it’s not just Mitchell seemingly heading in the right direction – the Bulldogs despite their 4-9-1 record appear to be on track to turn things around. 

“Our team is playing well,” said Easterling. “We have had a good week and have to get the bats going. I’m excited to see how we finish.”

Momentum and peak performance is going to be vital if the Bulldogs want to host the area tournament. Marbury aligns with Elmore County, Holtville and Jemison and is currently sitting 1-1 with a loss to Eclectic and a win over Jemison. 

Easterling: “With me being in South Alabama for the past 10 years, I don’t know much about the teams up here, but it doesn’t take long to see recent score to know we have a tough area.”