Extra Inning Softball’s National High School Player of the Week—May 4, 2021 (Week 10)

We have some amazing performances this week including some in playoff action as the high school season progresses.

Each Tuesday for the next several months we’ll honor top performances nationwide; if you’d like to have a player considered, scroll down to see how to fill in a nomination.

Players below are recognized for play in games Sunday, Apr. 25, 2021 through Saturday, May 1, 2021…

*****

Extra Inning Softball’s National High School Player of the Week

* Senior Maya Johnson of St. Joseph Academy in Cleveland, Ohio had an amazing week that she’ll always remember.

The Pitt signee pitched a perfect game for her St. Joseph’s Academy Jaguars striking out 18 of the 21 batters she faced in the complete 7-inning game last Tuesday (April 27) and also surpassed the 600 strikeout total for her career.

The 6-foot-1 hurler is only 37 away from 700 K’s and that’s in just three years of varsity play.

As if those milestones weren’t enough, Maya totaled 66 K’s in 30 innings pitched for the week and had two shutouts—the other was a 24-strikeout effort in 11 innings the day before.

The lefty pitcher’s perfect game was the senior’s second of her career and the good vibes must have been in the air because the same day her PA Strikers teammate Karlee Smith tossed her own perfect game for her Monmouth Regional (New Jersey) High team.

Our cutoff for the week was Saturday, but on Sunday, May 2, Maya pitched another masterpiece striking out 19 batters in a key 1-0 win.

Quite a week for our @03_strikers @SoftballSja @MayaJohnson_SJA! ✅600+ career Ks ✅ complete game PERFECT game ✅ 3 shutouts ✅ 85 Ks in 37 innings pitched ✅ only 2 Earned Runs ✅ 3BB ✅ 37 Ks needed for 700 ✅ ALL in a week’s work! 💙💛🥎 @Pitt_SB @ExtraInningSB @Los_Stuff pic.twitter.com/ZWRjxNu2M2

— PA Strikers '03 (National Team) (@03_strikers) May 3, 2021

 

We asked the ACC-bound pitcher what she was thinking as she was progressing through her perfect game.

“When I was pitching my perfect game this past week,” Maya began, “going into the last inning I knew I needed to be lights out. We were playing our rival school and were winning 1-0 going into the 7th. That game was supposed to be my light day where I pitched half the game, but when I kept putting up 1-2-3 innings and the game was tight there was no way anybody was pulling me off the mound and everybody knew it! I went out in the 7th inning not wanting to even give them a baserunner or chance to tie the game. I knew we were going to get a good team win.”

And what about the big 600 strikeout milestone?

“When I hit 600K’s I honestly wasn’t thinking about it at all,” the pitcher continued, “because we were in a tied game in extra innings in the top of the 11th and I knew my team needed me to stay focused. I was more focused on the current moment then the milestone in my career. After the game when it set in, I was super excited to hit 600 K’s given that I lost my entire junior season due to COVID… it was truly a humbling moment.”

One thing that made the perfect game extra… perfect… was that Maya and her catcher called their own game!

“My pitch caller was out of town and it was my first game ever calling my own pitches with my catcher,” she explains. “There would be times where my catcher and I would be laughing because we would both go to call the exact same thing at the same time, so it was a really cool experience.”

One thing Maya says she’s big on—and what’s helped her have an amazing career to date—is positive affirmations.

“When a batter is zoning in on my pitches my biggest strategy when I face them is just positive affirmations,” she says.  “I have put in all the work I can when it comes to the question of if I am good enough to face the hitter.”

“People often times will see me counting with my fingers on the mound in a big moment with runners on base and a good hitter at the plate, and I will be saying, ‘You are powerful, you are talented, and you are mentally stronger in this moment,’ I have a ‘never back down’ philosophy when facing hitters which is why I don’t walk a ton of people. I will attack the hitter and in long at bats I tell myself in this moment I am going to be the more mentally tough individual. I throw to my strengths and force them to hit my pitch, and that truly is my strategy against good hitters.”

Runner-Up National Players of the Week

* Briana Bower, a 2021 RHP for Huntley (Illinoi) High, was lights out in the circle last week as she pitched five shutouts including a no-hitter and three on-hitters.

Briana threw 37 innings and had 97 K’s versus just six walks and limited the opponents to just a .094 batting average while compiling a 0.00 ERA.

In one game, she struck out 25 batters in nine innings and also had a 20-K performance in a seven-inning contest.

She also got it done in a big way at the plate, getting two home runs and a pair of doubles as part of a .764 batting average for the week.

Honorable Mention National Players of the Week

* Jayden Heavener makes another appearance this week as the Fab Freshman continues her march to an All-American debut campaign at the high school level.

The dominating pitcher at Pace (Florida) High pitched a pair of games in the district semi’s and championship game and Jayden won both to help her team advance to regionals.

In the semi’s she had 21 K’s and in the championship added 19 more, giving her 227 strikeouts in 13 games and 91 innings pitched.

Jayden also leads the team with four home runs—including two in one game last week— and 18 RBIs

“Pace hasn’t won District since 2013,” the frosh explains, “so the wins last week felt so good. I felt as a pitcher I have the game in my hands and I had to do it for my team. At the beginning of the season, I was very nervous (being a Freshman there is a lot of pressure because I knew I would be pitching to juniors and seniors). The more I pitched, though, the more confident I got it myself in my ability to control the game.”

Her record is 11-2 for the season with a 0.77 ERA.

* Ava Brown, considered one of the top pitchers in the sophomore class, pitched a perfect game striking out 20-of-21 she faced for Lake Creek (Texas) High in the Round 1 of the playoffs.

In the game, she threw 77 K’s and 64 of them were strikes. She also hit .400 on the week with a home run.

For the year, Ava is hitting .598 batting with 12 home runs and has 51 RBIs and in the circle is 14-0 in the circle with 141 K’s against just five walks.

Lake Creek is ranked as a Top 5 team in Texas by TGCA and USA Today has had them as high as #2 in the nation.

* Lexi Paulsen, a 2022 P for Bloom Carroll (Carroll, Ohio) went 4-0 and in 25 innings had 62 K’s versus six walks while giving up just one earned run. At the plate she hit .500 and was even walked intentionally in the 8^th inning of a game.

Lexi pitched an 8-inning game in which she struck out 23 batters and gave up just one hit in a 3-0 win.

For the season, the Midwest junior has a 0.49 ERA and has 239 strikeouts in 106 innings thanks to her power, spin and off-speed pitcher.

* Shannon Becker, a 2021 P for Mahopac (New York) High, threw two shutouts with a total of 25 strikeouts to just one walk and gave up only two hits in each game.

In a her first start of the year, she fanned 16 batters and offensively was impressive as well, going 4-for-8 and scored three runs, including the game-winner in the top of the 7^th, to help her earn MaxPreps/NFCA High School Player of Week (East Region) honors.

* Kaitlyn Sailor, a 2023 SS/3B for Celina (Texas) High, hit three home runs with a triple and pair of doubles last week and was twice intentionally walked.

She now has eight home runs with 42 RBIs on the season and in league and playoff action is hitting .540 with a .630 on-base percentage.

*** Scroll down to read about more outstanding performances across the nation in high school softball last week!

*****

Nomination Process

Each week during the spring and summer high school seasons, Extra Inning Softball honors a National High School Player of the Week.

Honoree are announced every Tuesday ; cutoff for submitting the nominations is each Monday at noon EST/9 am PST.

We’re looking for standouts who excelled in the circle, at the plate or in the field so be sure to nominate your favorite performance(s) by submitting the following:

• Player Name
• Grad Year (example: Class of 2021 or Senior)
• Position(s)
• High school team name with city/state
• Stats for the week (be as detailed as possible!)
• Up-to-date season stats if possible
• Recruiting information if applicable
• Any interesting background on the player
• Action and/or head shots
• If possible, contact info if we’d like more info or quotes

Email info and photos (1-4 as available) by the cutoff of Monday at noon EST/9 am PST to: [email protected].

*****

Extra Inning Softball National High School Players of the Week (Past & Present)

2021

• Apr. 27: P/UT Karlyn Pickens (North Buncombe, Weaverville, North Carolina)
• Apr. 20: P/IF Madison Inscoe (Nansemond-Suffolk Academy, Suffolk, Virginia)
• Apr. 13: P Keagan Rothrock (Roncalli, Indianapolis, Indiana)
• Apr. 6: C Jayla Castro (Rocklin, California)
• Mar. 30: SS Brooke Blankenship (River Ridge, New Port Richey, Florida)
• Mar. 23: SS Rylee Cloud (Fairview, Grant, Louisiana)
• Mar. 16: IF Jenna Madison (Curry, Jasper, Alabama)
• Mar. 9: P/IF Annabelle Widra (Spain Park, Hoover, Alabama)
• Mar. 2: C/3B Elizabeth Moffitt (Prosper, Texas)

2020

Season cancelled in March due to COVID-19 pandemic

• Mar. 17: P  Kenzi Lyall (Alleghany, Sparta, North Carolina)
• Mar. 10: C Maci Bergeron (Notre Dame, Crowley, Louisiana)
• Mar. 3: IF Jayda Coleman (The Colony, Texas)
• Feb. 26: IF/P Micaela Wark (Reedy, Frisco, Texas)

2019

• Jun. 10: P/1B Sydney Supple (North, Oshkosh, Wisconsin)
• May 27: P Aynslie Furbush (Winter Springs, Florida)
• May 20: SS Bailey Dowling (St. Joseph-Ogden, St. Joseph, Illinois)
• May 13: P Britton Rogers (Cypress Ranch, Cypress, Texas)
• May 6: C Neely Peterson (Cypress Creek Middle, Wesley Chapel, Florida)
• Apr. 29: OF/IF/P Angela Zedak (Marist, Chicago, Illinois)
• Apr. 22: SS Kali Heivilin (Three Rivers, Michigan)
• Apr. 15: 3B Trinity Cannon (Forney, Texas)
• Apr. 8: P/1B Sydney Supple (North, Oshkosh, Wisconsin)
• Apr. 1: OF Leea Hanks (Eustis, Florida)
• Mar. 25: P/IF Madison Inscoe (Nansemond-Suffolk Academy, Suffolk, Virginia)
• Mar. 18: 1B/OF Avery Goelz (Lakewood Ranch, Bradenton, Florida)
• Mar. 11: OF/2B Tanya Windle (Cactus, Glendale, Arizona)
• Mar. 4: SS Hallie Wacaser (Bentonville West, Centerton, Arkansas)
• Feb. 25: P Stevie Hansen (Norco, California)

2018

• May 27: P Lexi Kilfoyl (Academy at the Lakes, Land O’ Lakes, Florida)
• May 20: P Ashley Rogers (Meigs County, Decatur, Tennessee)
• May 13 (tie): P Sydney Supple (Oshkosh North, Oshkosh, Wisconsin)
• May 13 (tie): OF Lexi Voss (Marist, Chicago, Illinois)
• May 6: P Danielle Williams (Amador Valley, Pleasanton, California)
• April 29: P Montana Fouts (East Carter, Grayson, Kentucky)
• April 22: IF Kasey Simpson (Keller, Texas)
• April 15: SS Jayda Coleman (The Colony, Texas)
• April 8: P Megan Faraimo (Cathedral Catholic, San Diego, California)
• April 1: C Macy Simmons (Hamilton, Chandler, Arizona)
• March 25: C Paige Pfent (Springstead, Spring Hill, Florida)
• March 18: SS/OF Deja Westbrook (Arcadia, California)
• March 11: P Megan Faraimo (Cathedral Catholic, San Diego, California)