AHS athletes tapped for post-season honors
By Sam Waller
A total of 10 Albany student-athletes, five Lion baseball players and five Lady Lion softball players, were honored for the achievements this spring with inclusion on all-area teams selected by the Abilene Reporter-News and Big Country Preps.
Baseball Honors
Outfielder Cooper Fairchild and first baseman Zane Waggoner were named to the ARN’s All-Big Country team, with pitcher Cole Chapman receiving honorable mention.
On the Big Country Preps team, Chapman was named to the first-team bullpen, Fairchild was a starting outfielder, and Waggoner was a reserve infielder.
Cole Read received honorable mention at pitcher and infielder, and Cason Fairchild received honorable mention as an infielder.
On the website’s Rising Stars Team, Waggoner was named a starting infielder and Read a bullpen pitcher, while Cason Fairchild was among others to watch.
“They all deserve it,” Albany coach David Fairchild said. “It was a good season. We’re looking forward to next year already.”
The Lions finished 21-6 overall and reached the regional final before falling to New Home.
Cooper Fairchild batted .466 with a team-leading 41 hits. He had five doubles, a home run, and 22 RBIs. He scored 31 runs and stole 16 bases.
Chapman was 10-2 with a save and a 3.38 ERA. In 18 appearances (12 starts), he worked 60 innings, recording 79 strikeouts against 38 walks. He also batted .289 with four doubles, two triples, a home run, and 18 RBIs. He scored 25 runs and stole 22 bases.
Waggoner led Albany in several offensive categories, including batting average (.494), on-base percentage (.602), slugging percentage (.864), doubles (11), homers (5), extra-base hits (18), RBIs (37), runs scored (32), and walks (21). He also stole seven bases.
Read was 8-1 with a 3.14 ERA on the mound. He recorded 53 strikeouts with 25 walks in 58 innings pitched over 19 appearances, including 10 starts. At the plate, he batted .297 with seven doubles, a triple, and 22 RBIs.
Cason Fairchild batted .320 with three doubles and 17 RBIs. He scored 29 runs and led the team in reaching base on hit by pitch five times.
Softball Recognition
Lady Lion pitcher Ana Balliew, shortstop Robin Lucas, and catcher Haily Cox all received honorable mention on the ARN’s All-Big Country team.
Balliew and Lucas also received honorable mention on the Big Country Preps team, while outfielder Gracie Price was named to the website’s All-Hustle Team, and second baseman-pitcher Carisa Barrera was among others to watch on the website’s Rising Stars Team.
“I’m proud of them for the accolades they got for finishing up a good year,” Lady Lions coach Jimmy Fuentes said. “I don’t think we’ve gotten anybody on either one of those teams the last couple of seasons. It’s nice to have some deserving kids on there again.”
The Lady Lions finished the season 15-15-1 overall and advanced to the regional quarterfinals, falling in three games to Hamlin.
Balliew pitched 140 of 172 innings, going 13-13 with a 4.60 ERA, striking out 80 while issuing 27 walks. At the plate, she batted .389 and led the team with 35 RBIs. She had seven doubles, a triple, and a home run to share the team lead in extra-base hits.
Lucas hit .500 with 17 RBIs, leading Albany in average, hits (49), runs (45) and stolen bases (23) as well as sharing the lead for extra-base hits with six doubles and three triples.
Cox hit .357 with 19 RBIs. She had eight doubles and a triple.
Price batted .384 with 13 RBIs. She finished with seven doubles and a triple.
“Gracie is what we coaches in Albany like to describe as being an ‘Albany kid’ – a kid that is expected to have a good work ethic, who is unselfish, very coachable, and has a high character and good attitude,” Fuentes told Big Country Preps. “Gracie possesses all of these traits and then some. She is everything we want an Albany athlete to be.”
Barrera hit .313 with 14 RBIs and six doubles. As a pitcher, she was 2-2 with two saves and a 4.70 ERA in 25.1 innings. She recorded 14 strikeouts against just seven walks.
