Kell off to strong start to season as they eye return to Columbus

Kell Longhorns softball team meets after win over Riverwood

The Kell Longhorns softball team is off to a good start to the 2024 season sitting at 3-0 after their win over Riverwood on Wednesday, having shutout their opponents in all three wins. And while it is very early in the season, the Lady Longhorns appear to be making a statement in regards to getting back to Columbus this year and leaving with a different result this time around.

“This has been an incredible start,” Kell head coach, Kevin Foster said after the Longhorns win on Wednesday, which would also be his 100th career win. “The girls are playing really well, great mentality, we’re getting great pitching, great defense and great hitting,” Foster added as he praised his players’ performance through their first three games. And while the start of the season is always an exciting time, Foster says the Longhorns have been locked in their team goals for the season.

“We said keep our eye on the prize, region championship first, win the regionals and then win the super regionals and then get to Columbus and win it all. So they’ve got their minds right,” Foster as he described his players’ mindsets heading into the season after seeing their 2023 campaign, which they finished at 28-9 overall and 12-0 in region play, come to an end at the state championship tournament.

“It was one of those things where they got a taste of greatness and they don’t want to lose it and it’s very clear with a lot of our players, we’ve got really great talented players top to bottom and I think they got that taste of playoffs and the intensity down there in Columbus,” Foster said of his players desire to make the return trip to the state championship tournament.

And with returning majority of last year’s roster, including pitchers Lyla Morici and Anna Bardeen, as well as Georgia Tech commit Julia Morici and Maggie Willmott, to name a few, the Longhorns are a high favorite to make another deep run. “Pitching and hitting and we have a very strong defense,” Foster added about the Longhorns .