Bingham softball delivering in preseason despite bad weather, heavy turnover
Apr 03, 2022 07:15PM ● By Brian Shaw
By Brian Shaw | [email protected]
The postal service delivers the mail come rain or shine. So do the Bingham softball team who did not let something like a complete blizzard squander their Miner Prep Camp.
The Miners lost several key players from last year’s class 6A state tournament runners-up squad to graduation. The camp inside Bingham’s gymnasium every Tuesday and Wednesday night in January and February had a specific aim: identify and get freshmen hopefuls ready for the upcoming season.
The loss to Riverton in the 6A state championship still stings for the Miners. But, the preseason is already showing that the preparations put in at this camp that started Jan. 10 and ran for six weeks through mid-February have been reaping rewards.
Bingham (6-0) stands unbeaten through the first six games, in no small part to several freshmen who have already contributed to the Miners quest to avenge their heartbreaking loss at the state championship.
Freshman Shyann Banasky has already hit a home run for the Miners and slapped in two RBI, while another freshman Zalia Carrillo has two RBI to go with a triple.
For a team that hasn’t scored fewer than nine runs in any of its six games thus far, the Miners are showing they have considerable depth despite the loss of four players to graduation.
Junior Braxton Hunter has smashed three home runs and has 13 RBI, while senior Shelbee Jones also has hit four homers to go with 10 RBI for the Miners, who have dispatched all of their preseason opposition in impressive fashion.
Bingham opened the season at Weber March 14, winning 9-0. The Miners then played host to Bear River, last year’s 4A state champion on March 15 and won that game 9-5. On March 18 the Miners hosted Syracuse, winning 10-0 in five innings.
But perhaps the most impressive game came in the Region 3 opener at Herriman, in which the Miners thumped their crosstown rivals 18-4 on March 22 in just six innings. Then on March 24 the Miners were back to home, hosting West Jordan, a game that ended in just four innings thanks to a 14-1 victory.
The Miners allowed 10 total runs in their first five games — five of which came in the win against Bear River. The reason for this is the defense, led by the senior Shelbee Jones who has pitched all five games thus far, putting up a sparkling 6-0 record in the process.
Another key contributor on defense for the Miners has been senior Noe Barawis, who at shortstop has been stellar for her team along with senior Chloe Latu, who plays third base.
The combination of a lethal offense to go with a solid defense is proof the Miners are ready to contend not only for a region title but avenge that painful loss to Riverton in the state championship game last year. The first shot the Miners will get at rival Riverton comes on March 31, after press time, when the two teams meet at Bingham for the first time since that title decider last May.
Based on their impressive results the Miners appear to have what it takes to make another run at the state tournament. If so, it would be their first state title since 2018.
For the 2022 season, the Bingham Miners softball by order of jersey numbers are: Kenzli Kessler, Chloe Latu, Kamrie Cowley, Noe Barawis, Charity Drake, Zalia Carrillo, Makaile Wootton, Braxton Hunter, Brookelie Kessler, Gracelyn Lemke, Shyann Banasky, Eden Twitchell, Brooklyn fogg, Eliza Chapple, Rian Howland, Shelbee Jones, Oakley Clark, Kali Clark, Olivia Lemke and C. Pierce.
