STANDISH — Catcher Sam Largess knew early on what many softball players ultimately discovered this season.

While catching for her Telstar teammate Kayla Merrill, she could see the junior hurler throwing even stronger than a year ago. That meant bad things for opposing hitters but good things for the Rebels.

“At the beginning of the season, when we first started in the gym, I was like, ‘Wow, it’s going to be a good year,'” recalls Largess, a senior. “I knew it from the start.”

Her first impressions proved accurate. Merrill had a phenomenal year and her Telstar team went on to win the Class C state title. Merrill pitched a masterful game in the state win and drove in three runs to lead the Rebels, making her the Sun Journal’s Softball All-Region Player of the Year.

“She’s an excellent fielder,” said Telstar coach Jim Lunney. “She has excellent control. She’s been building every year. She’s the total package. We’re (state champions) because of her and she’s here because she has a pretty good defense behind her and we’ve got some kids that can hit the ball at times.”

In a year in which many pitchers struggled to adjust to the new 43-feet distance of the pitcher’s mound, Merrill thrived. She worked diligently through the offseason. She pitched at that distance, adjusted to it and built up her arm strength.

“I’ve been playing all winter long at the 43 feet,” said Merrill, whose only loss in high school came this year in the Mountain Valley Conference championship game to Georges Valley. “So that helped me out a lot. I’ve been trying to work on it all winter and trying to get used to that 43 feet.”

While some pitchers didn’t fare well with the new distance and couldn’t match the success they had a year ago, Merrill was even better. She dominated most of the year and never seemed fazed by the new distance. If anything, it enabled her to be better.

“It helped her a lot,” said Largess. “It gives her more time for her balls to move. Her curveball breaks late. So that three feet gave it more opportunity to break. She worked so hard over the winter to adjust to that distance.”

Merrill went 14-0 during the regular season, posting nine shutouts and a 0.532 earned run average. She struck out 118 and walked just nine. That’s a ratio of 12-to-1.

She allowed just seven earned runs, 11 total and 38 hits in 14 games. In the playoffs, she was just as stingy. She allowed just four runs in four tourney games. A strong Georges Valley club got two runs and five hits off her in the regional final while a potent George Stevens Academy offense was held to just two hits and one run in the state game. She struck out 17 between the two title games and walked just two.

“This year, I just wanted to go out and get wins behind us and play strong defense,” said Merrill. “On the mound, I just tried to throw strikes, hit my corners and try to increase my speed throughout the year.”

Merrill also batted .500, scored 18 runs and didn’t strike out during the regular season. She drove in the tying run in the 3-2 win over the Bucs in the regional final and knocked in three and scored one in the 5-1 win over GSA in the states.

“She’s a worker,” said Lunney. “She throws all through the winter. I tip my hat to all pitchers because they have to pitch all winter. This year, the 43 feet, I think she was very confident at it. She worked on a variety of pitches this year.”

Merrill shared pitching duties as a sophomore last year but shined in a tough spot, beating Georges Valley in the Western C final. That proved to be a bit of a coming out party for Merrill. This year, she was Telstar’s ace from the start and shared MVC Player of the Year honors with Georges Valley’s Danielle Frye. 

Merrill was able to maintain her fastball with increased arm strength and utilized the extra distance for her curve and change-up. Her tremendous control allowed her to hit the corners well. Between nice movement and an ability to change speeds, Merrill proved tough to hit. It was well into the season before the opposition even managed to get a runner past second base.

“I got my change-up working a lot better this year which helped me out a lot,” said Merrill. “That was my newest pitch that I really tried to work on.”

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