Five Lady Eagles earn all-state honors

Staff Report
The Central Catholic softball team was represented by five Lady Eagles — two first-team selections and three honorable mention choices — on the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Class 1A All-State team released Tuesday.
Junior pitcher Megan Landry and senior outfielder Geralyn “Gee” Garrett were first-team choices, while senior Kimberly Russo and juniors Bridgette Swan and Brittany Longman were honorable mention choices.
Landry, who was named the District 7-1A Most Valuable Player earlier this postseason, finished the season with a 27-4 mark.
She finished the season with a 1.05 ERA after surrendered just 24 earned runs. She walked just 24 and struck out 320 this season. She also had a .957 fielding percentage.
Offensively, she hit .420 with 13 RBIs, an on-base percentage of .484.
Coach Russo said Landry had a great year, noting she had double-digit strikeouts consistently.
“She pitched very strong all year,” Coach Russo said.
Garrett finished her season season with a .507 batting average and four home runs, 28 RBIs, 14 stolen bases and 26 runs. She recorded a .551 on-base percentage.
Defensively, she had a 1.000 fielding percentage.
Garrett led the Lady Eagles in batting average, home runs, RBIs and slugging percentage.
“Gee brought a lot of range in the outfield and batted with a lot of power,” Coach Russo said. “At any time when Gee swung the bat, she had the ability to put points on the board … She’s going to be missed because she’s just a great athlete with a lot of range in the outfield and just a strong, strong offensive attack for us.”
Russo, a senior shortstop, hit .450 with one home run, 10 RBIs, 19 stolen bases and 33 runs. She had an on-base percentage of .462.
She led the team in runs and stolen bases and triples.
Defensively, she recorded a .925 fielding percentage and led the team in assists.
Coach Russo said his daughter had a lot of knowledge and often times would organize the different defensive plays.
“Her leadership in the infield is going to be missed along with her speed and her ability just to make things happen,” Coach Russo said. “When we couldn’t do it offensively, she did it on the bases for us a lot of times.”
Swan, a first baseman, batted .440 with two home runs and 28 RBIs.
Defensively, she had a 1.000 field percentage.
“She took over the first base position from (graduating senior) Abbie (Bergeron), and we just never looked back at first base,” Coach Russo said.
Offensively, Coach Russo also had good things to say about Swan, noting she is “just powerful, strong, hits the ball hard. Bridgette had a very, very good year.”
Longman, a second baseman, batted .438 with a home run and 27 RBIs. She had an on-base percentage of .452.
Defensively, she recorded a fielding percentage of .935.
Coach Russo said Longman was solid offensively and did a “decent” job at second base after being moved there this year from the outfield.
“I thought it was a smart move for us,” Coach Russo said of the move to the infield. “She just was so strong offensively. Brittany just hits the ball hard and just had good hand-eye coordination and power and had (a) good on-base percentage.”
Central Catholic finished its season with a 27-4 mark and advanced to the Class 1A state semifinals where it fell to eventual state runner-up Ascension Catholic, 5-0.
Class 1A state champion Cedar Creek swept the individual awards as Caley Pyles was named Outstanding Player and Julie Riser, Coach of the Year.
Additional reporting by www.theadvocate.com