Rylie Perry (Chesterfield, Mo.) was a force in the circle, helping the St. Louis Worth Prospects 03 to a third-place finish at the ASA/USA Softball 10U Class B Nationals in Blue Springs, Mo. this past weekend.

Perry’s efforts both in the circle and at the plate helped earn her the 14th and final of this year’s ASA Junior Olympic (JO) Player of the Week award, presented by Worth Fastpitch and StudentSports.com. Announced today by the Amateur Softball Association (ASA)/USA Softball, Perry pitched 18 innings with 16 strikeouts while only giving up nine earned runs en route to a 4-1 record.

“Her performance this weekend was wicked,” said St. Louis Worth Prospects 03 head coach Craig Wood. “She got a lot of pitching time, probably more than normal. She battled through even though she was tired. She never complained. She stepped up in the circle and did better and better. I was really proud of her.”

Along with her pitching, Perry had a solid weekend at the plate. She had a batting average of .545 (6-for-11) with seven RBI, some of which came on her first career home run. She also sparked a rally that helped her team come back from a 9-2 deficit to win the game.

“Her hitting was phenomenal,” said Perry’s mother Stacy Perry. “She’s always working to get better. She takes pitching lessons, hitting lessons and we go up to the high school all the time to work on her pitching and fielding. She takes lessons during the winter. She’s always working to get better, a

Established to recognize JO players 18 years or younger for outstanding play in an ASA/USA sanctioned event, the ASA/USA Softball JO Player of the Week will honor 14 athletes, male or female, from May 9 – August 8 following the conclusion of the ASA/USA JO National Championships.

Nominations will be taken on a week-by-week basis (see below schedule) and will be submitted and accepted through this form found on StudentSportsSoftball.com  until noon ET every Tuesday.

In order to be eligible for the award, athletes must be registered with their local ASA/USA association and must have participated in ASA/USA Softball sanctioned events or tournaments during the week nominated.

2014 ASA/USA Softball JO Player of the Week award schedule
Week 1 (April 30 – May 6): Faith Willis (Liberty, Mo.) – Originals-Shanks
Week 2 (May 7 – 13): Allie Roberts (Rogers, Minn.) – Northwest Diamonds
Week 3 (May 14 – 20): Jordyn Kadlub – Tampa Mustangs
Week 4 (May 21 – 27): Lauren Mathis (Windermere, Fla.) – Windermere Wildfire
Week 5 (May 28-June 3): Mackenzie Dixon (Huntsville, Texas.) – Huntsville Heat
Week 6 (June 4 – 10): Lauren Gohacki (Finleyville, Pa.) – Pittsburgh Diamond Stars 14U
Week 7 (June 11 – 17): Avery Winchell (New Cumberland, Pa.) – Columbus County Magic Red 12U
Week 8 (June 18 – 24): Morgan Hirai (Pasco, Wash.) – Tri-City Fuzion 12U
Week 9 (June 25 – July 1): Sydney Hoffman (Lewisburg, Pa.) – PA Power Elite 12U
Week 10 (July 2 – 8): Jaycie Cline (East Moline, Ill.) – Quad City Lady Hitmen 12U Red
Week 11 (July 9 – 15): Haylee Petre (Atlanta, Mo.) – Velocity 12U
Week 12 (July 16 – 22): Hannah Newton (Peachtreee City, Ga.) – GA Power DeMarini Gold
Week 13 (July 23 – 29): Holly Murray (Carbon Hill, Ala.) – White Lightning 98
Week 14 (July 30 – August 5): Rylie Perry (Chesterfield, Mo.) – St. Louis Worth Prospects 03

 

Honorable Mentions:

Aubrey Barnhart (Pleasant View, Tenn.) – Aubrey’s .478 (11-for-23) batting average helped her Tennessee Mojo 03 team en route to a Championship finish at the ASA/USA 10U Nationals in Johnson City, Tenn.  Aubrey collected four doubles, seven RBI and scored five times.

Emily Carmella (Stroudsburg, Penn.) – A strong offensive showing at the ASA/USA 18U Class B National Championship in York, Penn. with the Pocono Pride Black helped earn Emily honorable mentions this week.  Emily punched a .471 batting average (8-for-17), including two doubles, one home run and two RBI.

Ashleigh Nalls (King George, Va.) – Ashleigh was stellar from the circle this past weekend at the ASA/USA 16U Nationals in Salem, Va., helping lead her Hanover Lady Hornets to a fifth place finish.  Ashleigh went 5-2 on the weekend, pitching 46 innings with 21 strikeouts and only eight earned runs allowed for a 1.20 ERA.