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Cherryville, NC (WNN) - The Cherryville High School softball team saw its playoff run and season come to an abrupt halt on May 8, 2026. After exceeding expectations during a rebuilding year, they had to forfeit their scheduled second-round playoff game against Murphy High School. This was due to illness and injuries, leaving the Lady Ironmen without enough eligible players available to compete. The unexpected exit from the NCHSAA 2A West Regional playoffs does not diminish their successful season. Coming into this season, Coach Lance Beam faced many questions about what to expect. He had lost 6 valuable players to graduation from last season. He knew the team had talent left, and some talented players were moving up from the middle school ranks; still, the question remained of how well they would come together as a cohesive unit.
Although there were a few games where things didn’t go quite so well, overall, this young team overachieved and produced a very good season, finishing with a regular-season record of 11-11. Several of these games could have gone in their favor, which would have impacted their record more favorably. Five seniors will graduate this spring; however, younger players gained valuable experience during this season, and a few hidden gems were discovered along the way. There is a strong foundation in place for next season and more talent moving up from the middle school ranks as well.
Jenny Brown moments before swinging - Lady Ironmen Softball - Cherryville High School Softball Field - March 25, 2026
Mason Beam (WNN)
One of the more pleasant surprises was how easily freshman Jenny Brown made the transition to the high school level. She not only excelled at pitching and playing third base and left field, but was also a hitting machine, leading the team in many categories. Her batting average was .475, followed by senior Kennedy Weathers, .459, and junior Landry Beam, .397. Brown also led in on-base percentage at .632, followed again by Kennedy Weathers at .593 and Landry Beam with .563. Doubles hit once again saw Brown in the lead with 9; Landry Beam and Kennedy Weathers each hit 6. Triples were led by Jenny Brown with 3, Landry Beam with 2, and Maddie Avery with 1. Kennedy Weathers set the pace with home runs at 3, and junior Kate Mulvey added 1 of her own. Kennedy Weathers had the best slugging percentage at .738, Jenny Brown was close behind with .721, and Landry Beam had .556. Jenny Brown had the most hits at 29, Kennedy Weathers was right on her heels with 28, and Landry Beam added 25. Jenny Brown was 9th in the NC 2A division, and 3rd in Southern Piedmont 2A/3A/4A with 33 runs scored. Landry Beam scored 27, and Kennedy Weathers scored 20 runs. Kennedy Weathers finished 14th in the NC 2A division for RBIs with 29, junior Kate Mulvey had 19, and Landry Beam had 18. Landry Beam’s 18 stolen bases placed her at 2nd in the Southern Piedmont 2A/3A/4A conference, followed by Jenny Brown with 12, and Kennedy Weathers with 9. In the circle, Jenny Brown struck out 90 batters, which placed her 3rd in the conference and 11th in the NC 2A division. In the field, senior Addison Davis was perfect with a fielding percentage of 1.000, which was good enough to place her 1st in the conference and 4th in the NC 2A division. She was followed by Jenny Brown at .969 and Kennedy Weathers at .947.
The overall team statistics were impressive as well. The Lady Ironmen hit .321, scored 162 runs, had 181 hits, 141 RBIs, 40 doubles, 9 triples, 4 homeruns, drew 127 walks, collected an on-base percentage of .458, and a slugging percentage of .446, as they also had 63 stolen bases. Coach Beam has a solid nucleus to build upon for next season, even with the departure of Kennedy Weathers, Jenna Anthony, Addison Davis, Camryn Shirley, and Raylei Gidney.
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