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Hughes gives Devils a spark
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Western Reserve’s Marley Oles throws during practice Tuesday. Oles and the Blue Devils will meet Attica Seneca East today at Kent State.
By Tom Williams
BERLIN CENTER
Since moving into the Western Reserve school district last summer, junior Aleah Hughes has played in district title games for volleyball, girls basketball and softball.
The Blue Devils won two of them. In March, they defeated Columbiana in the Division IV district title game to earn the school’s first trip to the regional in girls basketball.
Last Wednesday, the Blue Devils softball team (20-2) defeated St. Thomas Aquinas, 6-2, to earn their first regional berth since 2007.
“We knew she was going to be a huge asset,” said senior center fielder Gabby Stubbs of Hughes. “We knew she would bring something [special] to every single sport that she was going to play.
“And it was a confidence boost because of losing some great seniors.”
Stubbs and Hughes were teammates on the volleyball and basketball teams. Also playing in the basketball regional were junior shortstop Tory White and sophomore outfielder Sydney Miller.
Hughes played the same three sports for Poland during her freshman and sophomore years.
“It was definitely hard leaving my friends,” Hughes said. “But I had gone to elementary school at Western Reserve so I knew all the kids.”
As a pitcher, Hughes (10-2) was voted first-team Inter Tri-County League Tier Two. She struck out 105 batters and walked seven in compiling an earned-run average of 0.65.
At the plate, Hughes is hitting .545 with 48 RBIs.
“She’s phenomenal, one of the best pitchers I’ve ever caught for,” said senior catcher Marley Oles, who has a .502 batting average. “She really meshed well with our team.”
Hughes is not the only newcomer as head coach Joe Serensky returned after four seasons of helping coach the Western Reserve baseball team.
Serensky coached the softball team from 2001-09, guiding them to regional trips in 2005, ’06 and ’07.
“We knew he would be good for the team,” Stubbs said. “He’s won titles and been to the regional.”
Senior third baseman April Lude said, “He likes to have fun and that’s why I like him.”
Serensky admitted he didn’t know how to react when he was approached about returning to softball.
“I asked my friend Tom Shugart and he was excited for the opportunity to come back and coach,” Serensky said of his longtime assistant.
Hughes said she hasn’t played for coaches with such relaxed styles.
“They are very laid-back but they are good coaches,” Hughes said. “Most of my coaches are strict [so] it’s nice [for a change]. I like it.”
The Blue Devils went unbeaten in league play to capture their sixth straight title. “This is the best hitting team I’ve ever coached,” Serensky said. “We managed to get a lot of early leads and put the pressure on the other team.”
Returning brought challenges, Serensky said.
“The first month of the season, we got to know each other and trust each other,” Serensky said. “That was the most challenging getting to know the girls.”
Two weeks ago, the Blue Devils lost shortstop Jenny Stubbs, one of the team’s best hitters, to an ACL injury. Serensky said the Blue Devils’ losses were to Division III district winner LaBrae (1-0) and Division I Stow (nine innings).
Today at 5 p.m. at Kent State University, the Blue Devils will play Attica Seneca East (17-10) in the regional semifinal.
“To go the regional, it’s indescribable,” Gabby Stubbs said.
Maybe, but it’s becoming a Western Reserve tradition.