On a night centered around her, senior Abby Jones spent pregame next to Oglethorpe County softball coach Brianna Dickens, catching groundballs off the bats of her teammates and delivering them to Dickens in the drill.
“She’s one of those kids that makes the coaching staff’s lives easier with her ability to help run (operations) on the field and say the things we can’t in the dugout at times,” Dickens said.
Players, coaches and fans honored Jones, who is the lone senior on the softball team this fall, on senior night on Aug. 31.
Dickens said Jones has always been one to lead by example, even as a freshman.
“Even last year, when we had nine seniors, it almost felt as if she was a senior with them with the way she carried herself,” Dickens said.
Jones has grown in a number of ways on the field from her freshman year. Her goal throughout her high school career has been continuous growth.
“I was trying to expand my knowledge,” she said. “I wanted to be productive on the hitting side and expand my game with knowing all the situations. Just overall trying to get stronger and become a true athlete.”
The Lady Patriots trailed Washington-Wilkes 4-0 after the top of the fourth last Thursday, when Jones took her teammates to the side and delivered a message. They scored three runs in the bottom of the inning.
Jones’ favorite moment of her career was when Oglethorpe County defeated Jefferson County to win the Region 4-AA championship during her freshman year. Jefferson County was OCHS’ biggest rival at the time.
Now with senior night behind her, Jones said she wants to focus on ending the season strong.
“I just want to leave (OCHS softball) in a positive state,” she said. “Our record right now isn’t too hot, but once region play starts, we really go back to 0-0.”