La Grange’s Corner Infielders Are Cornerstones of the Team’s Success

They are corner infielders on the diamond.

And cornerstones of leadership for the Lady Leps softball team.

Third baseman Madi Adams and first baseman Kylin Brawley, both juniors, have emerged as huge parts of this year’s La Grange softball team, which has started the season 11-6-1.

“They’ve taken that leadership role and run with it and I’m proud of the ownership they feel for this team,” said new La Grange head softball coach Ted Ferretti. “They’ve not only stepped up their leadership roles but they’ve stepped up their play. They hold themselves accountable – which is the sign of a true leader.”

We’re proud to honor Adams and Brawley as this week’s Fayette County Athletes of the Week.

We caught up with both at practice Monday. Here’s some highlights from our interview Both players compliment what they have seen from the team as a whole so far this season.

“This team is very connected,” Brawley said.

See “There’s no drama, we all get along and there’s a lot of trust.”

“We have really good perseverance,” Adams said. “We can be down and still come back.”

Both girls had high praise for Coach Ferretti in his first year at LHS.

“He’s very passionate about our game and he’s very encouraging,” Brawley said.

“He really wants the best for us – and it shows,” Adams said.

Adams and Brawley both said they have learned a lot from the trio of La Grange softball assistant coaches – Hannah Gerecke, Blake-Ann Fritsch and Hatti Moore, all of whom won state titles as La Grange players and who all went on to play D-I college softball.

“They can teach and show, so it’s easier to learn,” Adams said.

“You know their information is correct and very valuable because of their past experience,” Brawley said Both Adams and Brawley said they started playing softball really young, at age three or four, and were often on some of the same Little League teams growing up – and their love for the game just keeps growing.

“I love the team aspect of it. Not everything is riding on you,” Brawley said. “You have eight other girls on the field at the same time that are going through the same thing you are.”

“I think I built most of my best friendships through softball,” Adams said.

Outside of softball both players are also really good students. Brawley is actually ranked No. 1 in the junior class. Adams said her favorite classes this year are English and History. Brawley said her favorite class is Biology.

Both have big plans for after graduation.

Adams said she would like to be a Pediatric Speech Therapist and eventually open her own practice. Brawley said she would like to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become a dentist.

When asked to describe Adams, here’s what Brawley said: “Madi is a strong third baseman. I know she’s going to stop the ball. She’s also a powerful hitter. We hit by each other in the lineup most of the time. We can depend on each other to put the ball in play.”

When asked to describe Brawley, here’s what Adams said. “As a third baseman Kylin is going to save all of my throws, so she pads my stats a little bit. She surprised me the other day with the splits. She’s a really good first baseman, a powerful hitter but she can also bunt.”

With both of these players anchoring the infield and the heart of the lineup, the Lady Leps seem poised for even greater success when district play starts next week.