Coach Andrea Poffinberger and her team wrapped up another great regular season Tuesday where they gift-wrapped losses for most of their opponents.  Other than a tough game versus the Middletown Knights, varsity softball was undefeated. The Lady Lancers finished 16-1 and expecting to make a solid run at the playoffs.

Led by returning all-area  first teamers Madison Ambush and Devan Puhl, the Lancers have a good mix of established players and talented newcomers.

“I have a great group of girls who work well together, and that makes a big difference, and my job is much easier as a coach,” said Poffinberger.

Kennedi Ambush, younger sister to Madison, provides speed and quickness for the Lancers. A left-handed batter, she’s shown to be adept at pounding out infield hits. She also does damage by using her speed to steal once reaching base.

The Frederick News-Post wrote an article about both Madison and Kennedi Ambush in late March.

Lauryn Lovewell is another freshman who is contributing to the varsity team, but she didn’t even expect to make varsity. In an interview with the Frederick News-Post, Lovewell said, “It just kind of happened. I was actually expecting to be on JV. I fit into the team very well. The girls treat me really nice.”

“Kennedi Ambush and Lauryn Lovewell came into tryouts varsity-ready.  They work hard day in and day out and are huge contributors to the team.  They both start for us and have been solid both offensively and defensively,” said Poffinberger.

Lovewell showed why she made the varsity team in an early season matchup versus Middletown.

Middletown is one of the best teams in Frederick County (they eventually handed Linganore their only loss of the season), but Lovewell stepped up to the plate and smacked a two-run hit with two outs on the board during the bottom of the first inning to eventually give Linganore a 2-1 win.

Later in the season, Linganore had no such luck against the Knights, losing a tough one by a score of 6-5. Middletown pitcher Sami Main is one of the most talented in the county and gave the Lancers a tough time.

“Sami Main is a great pitcher and keep our big hitters from getting some clutch hits.  It was a tough game but going in we knew it was going to be a tight game,” said Poffinberger.

With the playoffs right around the corner, the team is using the loss as motivation and as a learning experience.

“We reflect, refocus and have short term memory loss,” said Poffinberger. “Every team loses and honestly I believe its a good reminder of what we don’t want to feel at the end of a game, especially right before we head into playoffs.”

“We are all aware that the teams will be gunning for us.  All you can do is physically and mentally prepare for that and play your best ball game.”

Senior, captain, and four-year starter Devan Puhl was also singled out in a Frederick News-Post article recently. The star center fielder and lead-off hitter made a huge running catch in a late-season against Tuscarora helped seal a 2-0 victory. Devan will be attending Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the fall to play softball and study biochemistry and biophysics.

“Devan Puhl is our lead off slapper and the person on the team with the highest batting average.  She makes things happen offensively and has also started in center field since her freshman year.  She is a great leader and major impact player,” said Poffinberger.

“Really I could say all of my players make a big impact on the season.  Number one through number fourteen, if they don’t do their job at practice and at games we aren’t as good as we are right now.”

When asked about her expectations for playoffs, Poffinberger said, “My expectations are high, that’s all I will say,” with a smile.