Humboldt junior outfielder Lakyn Meadows is already looking ahead to next season after helping her team reach the regional championship game Wednesday.
Meadows shined in the field and in the batter’s box throughout the regional semifinals and finals. Before area officials begin showering her with regional and All-Tri-Valley League recognitions, area Iola Register readers recognized her as an April Allen County Area Athlete of the Month.
“I just kept hitting the ball, and as I kept hitting the ball I kept gaining more confidence,” Meadows said. “Last year, and the year before, I wasn’t really a big part of our hitting. I didn’t get a lot of time to hit. Confidence helped, and I kept getting more consistent.”
Meadows was one of the Lady Cubs’ most reliable outfielders and played a key role in their run to the Tri-Valley League title.
In April, she hit four home runs, including a grand slam. Her 27 hits were second best for the Lady Cubs and her 21 RBIs ranked her third. She is first in slugging percentage at .857, as well as on base percentage and boasts a .551 batting average heading into the postseason.
“It’s great. I didn’t realize so many people were noticing me,” Meadows said of the recognition. “I was just doing what I could to keep us going. It feels good to know people are noticing my accomplishments and are proud of me.”
Meadows was equally impressive in the playoffs with five hits and five RBIs over the Lady Cubs’ three regional contests.
Her peak was a three-hit, four-RBI performance against Burden Central. She was one of only three players to register a hit while facing Colgan’s elite pitcher junior pitcher Bella Accanio, who tallied 14 strikeouts while handing Humboldt their first loss in nearly two weeks.
“I was proud of our team. Going into the year we had a lot of strengths to repurpose” from last year’s graudation. “We knew we were going to play a difficult team if we made the championship. We gave it all we had.”
After coming four runs short of a regional title, and graduating only two seniors, Meadows likes her team’s prospects for next season.
Filling holes left by perennial All-TVL shortstop Laney Hull and second baseman Skylar Hottenstein will not be easy, but Meadows will get a good look at potential replacements while playing with her summer league team over the next few months.
“We’re all excited to keep playing,” she said. “We have two spots to fill, but I’m confident we can keep going and be strong next year, too.”
