Shawano’s Gull, Kary make 1st team for softball

Johnson, Daniel also recognized
By: 
Morgan Rode
Sports Editor

The Shawano Community High School softball team had four players honored by the Bay Conference following the spring season.

Junior Margo Gull earned a unanimous spot on the first team, while junior Elizabeth Kary also was a first teamer. Senior Taylor Johnson landed on the second team, while junior Isabel Daniel earned honorable mention status.

Along with strong defense in the outfield, Gull finished the season with a .400 batting average. She scored a team-leading 17 runs.

Gull also drove in 11 runs for the Hawks and led the team with 14 stolen bases.

“Being selected (to) a unanimous spot on the first team meant a lot to me,” said Gull. “I have always been dedicated to softball and have worked extremely hard, which has led me to this accomplishment.

“After receiving that honor, (it) will most certainly motivate me going into my senior season. My abilities of playing softball being recognized has made me want to work even harder and push myself to keep getting better and better for next season and so on.”

Kary finished with the Hawks’ top batting average for the season at .411. She also walked eight times and drove in a team high 18 runs.

The junior scored 11 runs and doubled five times, tripled once and homered once among her 23 hits.

“A spot on first team means that all my hard work has paid off,” said Kary. “All of the weekends, the missed events and the late nights has meant that I had earned that.

“That honor will motivate me to keep working hard for the future and will keep driving me for my bigger goals.”

Johnson was one of three pitchers Shawano used this spring. She earned seven of the team’s 11 wins and picked up a save, posting a 3.76 earned run average in 44⅔ innings.

At the plate, she had a .269 batting average and drove in 10 runs. Johnson scored seven runs.

“Receiving an all-conference honor this year was a goal of mine,” said Johnson. “To me, this award is extremely humbling in the fact that all the coaches in conference get a vote, and I was their pick. It’s a great way to cap off my senior season.”

Daniel was an on-base machine for the Hawks, posting a .355 batting average and also drawing 12 walks.

The junior drove in nine runs and scored 11 times.

“A spot on the honorable mention team means a great deal to me,” said Daniel. “It shows how hard I have worked throughout the 10 years that I have been playing.

“The honor will motivate me to practice even harder throughout the offseason in order to be playing at my highest potential during my last season of softball.”

Shawano finished the year with a 12-8 overall record and tied for fourth in the Bay with a 6-6 mark. The Hawks upset New London in the postseason before being eliminated by Luxemburg-Casco in a regional final.

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