2020 Softball Preview: Newcomers

HUNTSVILLE — The Sam Houston State softball team is set to begin preparing for its Southland Conference regular-season and tournament title defenses when the nonconference portion of the schedule kicks off Friday against Mason at the Stetson Leadoff Classic in Florida.

Bearkats head coach Garrett Valis, the 2019 SLC Coach of the Year, has a solid group of returning players who make a strong nucleus to build around with the newcomers. SHSU has a mixture of junior college players and freshman with skills that will benefit the team.

"When you have so much experience coming back it would be easy to look at the newcomers as development type athletes who would have to wait their turn to contribute," Valis said. "However, these young women have done a great job of showing up in shape and contributing in all phases early on that I anticipate big things from them moving forward. They all enjoy to compete and are working on developing the confidence to align with their ability.

"Whether in a starting role or coming off the bench, they provide tremendous depth and athleticism to our roster that we have not had here before."

As a sophomore at Temple College in 2019, infielder Madilyn Weatherly was a first-team North Texas Junior College Athletic Conference All-Region V North selection after batting .391 in 56 games at first base with 16 home runs, 89 runs batted in, 16 doubles, 49 runs with a slugging percentage of .750. She set a new NJCAA National Tournament record with seven RBI thanks to a pair of three-run home runs in a 14-1 victory over Shelton State.

Weatherly was the Region V North Conference Player of the Year in 2018 to lead Temple to the NJCAA DI national championship. She was a National Fastpitch Coaches Association third-team All-American and hit .461 with 10 home runs, 16 doubles and 36 RBIs as a freshman in 42 games.

"Maddie is in her first season with us as a junior and is another national champion from the junior college level," Valis said. "She has done an excellent job of learning our system and fitting into our program. She provides some power from the left side of the plate and a dependable glove at first base. I am excited to add an experienced athlete like her to our infield group."

Freshman infielder Emily Telg was a four-year starter for coach Wendy Weiss at Caldwell High School where she hit .436 as a senior with eight home runs, eight doubles, three triples, 25 RBI and 20 stolen bases to lead the Hornets to the bi-district round of the playoffs. She earned district offensive MVP and All-Brazos Valley honors.

As a junior, she racked up 41 hits and launched nine home runs and batted .512 to earn district MVP and All-Brazos Valley honors.
"Emily is a middle infielder that has the ability to play just about anywhere," Valis said. "Her ability to play small ball and hit the long ball is exciting to say the least. She is very hard worker that is a joy to watch. She has a bright future in our program."

As a four-year letterwinner at Angleton High School for coach Cindy Rubio, Grill hit .453 with 36 doubles, 15 triples, three home runs, 119 RBI and 42 stolen bases. She led the Ladycats to the Class 5A state championship as a senior and was named to the all-tournament team.

Grill earned all-state, all-district and was selected to the TGCA Legacy Team in 2019. She picked up all-district first-team honors as a junior, as well as TGCA all-star, all-county first team and all-county offensive MVP accolades.

"Ellie is an outfielder that has the ability to play first base as well," Valis said. "I see her as a triple-threat candidate from the left side as she continues to develop and enjoy how she prepares every day."

Hannah Scheaffer was a four-year starter at catcher for coach Marissa Stevens at Cy-Fair High School. She was the Defensive Player of the Year in District 17-6A all four years.

After helping the Bobcats to a 16-12 finish in 2018, she was also named to the All-Greater Houston second team after averaging .432 at the plate with two homers as a junior. She was named a TSWA All-State second-team selection.

"Hannah is a catcher, corner for us that has tremendous quickness behind the plate and continues to earn the trust of our pitching staff," Valis said. "She works hard for strikes behind the plate and has been dedicated to adding strength early in her career. The depth and level of play she can provide is a welcome addition to our catching position."

Madison Dillon was a two-sport athlete at Klein Collins where she helped the Tigers to district championships in her sophomore, junior and senior seasons. She hit .425 with eight doubles, three triples, two home runs, 29 RBI and 11 stolen bases as senior to guide the Tigers to the state finals.

Dillon was a first-team all-district and academic all-state selection as a senior and an all-district second-team selection as a freshman, sophomore and junior for head coach Audra Troutman.

"Madison is a utility athlete for us who provides a positive spark to our program," Valis said. "She does a good job of barreling up the ball at the plate and is a kid who has handled having to learn a lot of positions in her young career."

2020 Softball Preview: Newcomers

Players Mentioned

Madison Dillon

Hannah Scheaffer

Emily Telg

Madilyn Weatherly

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