The Angelina College softball program has evolved into a national powerhouse over the past three years, winning the NJCAA Division I national title in 2014 and spending time at or near the top of the national rankings in every year since, reaching the No. 1 spot on several occasions.
On Thursday, the Lady Roadrunners stocked up on talent for the 2017 season, signing seven new players in a ceremony held inside AC’s Shands Gymnasium.
Six of the players and their families were present, while Sydney Brown (Ironwood Ridge High School, Tucson, AZ) participated – and met her future teammates – via Skype. Also joining the Lady Roadrunner program were Emilee Cernosek (Seven Lakes HS, Katy), Kacy Capps (Hudson HS, Lufkin), Nikki Whitehead (Kingwood Park HS, Kingwood), Rachel Agnello (Bryan HS, Bryan), Raven Britt (Vidor HS, Vidor) and Shelby Mixon (Woodville HS, Woodville).
Those players are expected to add considerable talent to a team building on last year’s 38-18 record and another appearance in the regional tournament. The Lady Roadrunners recently beat Stephen F. Austin University, a Division I program, in a fall game, and are expected to achieve a high perch near the top of the NJCAA rankings early in 2017.
AC head coach Mark Mattson said this new group will fit in well with his program, helping the Lady ‘Runners maintain their high expectations.
“We are very excited for this year’s class,” Mattson said. “Our signees thus far are a great group of young ladies who come from outstanding families. We expect big things from them as we do from all of our recruiting classes. We can’t wait to get them on campus and get to work.”
The Lady Roadrunners will host the regional tournament in March; they open the regular season on Jan. 27 as participants in the Coastal Bend Tournament in Beeville.
