10U Fireballs Set Foundation For Softball Success

From its youth teams on up to the high school teams, Severna Park softball is on strong footing, and this year’s 10U Green Hornets Fireballs are the latest area softball team to produce a solid season.

The team of Madison Cassady, Mimi Castaneda, Kate Edwards, Austyn Lundfelt, Alivia O’Meara, Layla Perry, Andrea Rom, Lauren Schuller, Zoey Sharp, Zoey Stafford, Anna Stauder, Katelyn Webster, Megan Young and Jaiden Zaniker, coached by Mick Young, Chris Rom and Brandon Cassady, went 10-5 in North County Community Girls Softball League play and won a playoff game in the NCCGSL championship tournament.

Along the way, the Fireballs achieved several standout victories. Severna Park held on for a one-run win over Linthicum-Ferndale Battitude in an away game in which starting pitcher Megan Young re-entered the game late to preserve Severna Park’s one-run lead by striking out the side in the fifth inning. In another victory away at South River, starting pitcher Andrea Rom re-entered the game and secured a two-run victory by closing out the side in the final inning.

Coach Mick Young said of those outcomes, “A couple of tough situations for young pitchers, but like our team as a whole, they showed no signs of giving up.”

The team also claimed an exciting win against a strong opponent in the NCCGSL tournament, defeating the Havenwood Lime Green Machines 13-12 in extra innings.

About half of the team will move up to 12U play next season, while the other half will play another year of 10U ball, giving Severna Park a strong base in both age groups.

“As coaches, we were all proud of how all the girls developed over the season,” said Young. “You could see marked improvement in every one of our players. We hit the ball real well all season, but I think the biggest factor in our success was our pitching. It seemed to get stronger as the season went on. The same goes for our fielding, we really started making some plays in the second half of the season, which helped in the tournament. We are very excited to watch those trends continue on.”