Foothill softball alums excelling as NCAA Division 1 freshmen

Four former Foothill League softball players are wasting no time making an impact on the NCAA Division 1 softball scene. Jessie Harper, Mariah Lopez, Cayla Kessinger and Amanda Doyle started their college softball careers in early February and have already accomplished a lot in their freshman year. Harper, a West Ranch High grad now at Arizona, was named the Pac-12 player and freshman of the week for the week of March 13-19. She had a season-high five RBIs and four hits against Hartford on March 11. In total this season, Harper has 35 hits, 28 RBIs, 10 home runs and a .380 batting average for the Wildcats, who are ranked second in the Pac-12. Saugus High’s Mariah Lopez, now at Oklahoma, recorded a career-high eight strikeouts against Western Kentucky on March 5. Nearly a week later on March 14, she pitched a no-hitter against Long Beach State.

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In that game, she recorded 78 pitches to strike out one, get nine flyouts and 11 groundouts. It’s the 48^th no-hitter in Sooner softball history. Oklahoma sits second in the big 12 conference with a 24-7 overall record. Mizzou’s Cayla Kessinger, formerly of Saugus, has 11 RBIs, 14 hits and three home runs this season. The Tigers are 17-11 overall this season and 0-2 in SEC play. Amanda Doyle, a Canyon High alumna playing for Louisiana State University, is tied for fourth-highest on the team in terms of RBIs with 16. She also has 24 hits, five doubles and three home runs to go along with a .494 slugging percentage. The Tigers are 23-7 overall and 1-2 in the SEC.