Laurel Standout Balances Softball, Church, Dance

Sarah Allsop and Rebecca Jayne were on the same softball team in middle school at Martin Luther King. As freshmen at Laurel High, Jayne began the season on the varsity while Allsop started out on junior varsity.

But during that 2008 season, Allsop was called up to the varsity.

"She had gotten so much better," said Jayne, who along with Allsop, are the only members of this year's team who have been on the Laurel varsity for four years. "Her first year, in seventh grade, she did not know the game that well. It was such a progress to see her from seventh grade to ninth grade."

During her high school career Allsop has had to balance her faith as a Seventh-Day Adventist. Her Christian doctrine calls for a refrain from "un-Godly activity" from sundown on Fridays to sundowns on Saturday.

Allsop, a shortstop and sometimes catcher, has missed some scrimmages and games on Saturdays this season and other softball games during her career at Laurel High. She has also played soccer for the Spartans and been involved in modern dance. Allsop has also been bothered by a sore knee this season. "I am not 100 percent," Allsop told Patch this week. "I have to balance softball and dance. It is a lot of work to be involved in."

Julia Provino, the third-year head coach for Laurel, told Patch on Friday that Allsop has missed two of the first 10 games due to other conflicts.

"Her knee is bothering her. I have used her at catcher and shortstop," Provino said.

Allsop was born in Trinidad and moved to Georgia with her family when she was three. They later moved to New York before coming to Maryland in time for Allsop to attend middle school. Her brother, Stephen, graduated from High Point High in Beltsville and played tennis at North Carolina Central University, a school that Sarah has applied to though she has not made a final decision.

Allsop, now hitting .347 on the year, had two hits in three at bats and scored three times as Laurel won on Thursday against Oxon Hill, 18-11. Jayne had three hits in three at bats, with a double, and scored four runs. Junior Candace Williams had two hits and drove in three runs for the Spartans.

"Her hitting has gotten so much better. She has gotten so much better," Jayne said of Allsop.

Laurel is 4-6 and is slated to play two games Saturday, against Flowers and Roosevelt, both at Laurel. "As a team, the chemistry is not as strong as the beginning of the year," Allsop said.

Jayne, who is hitting .467,  hopes to play softball in college and has looked at Hood and Frostburg. "She is a huge asset to the team," Provino said. "She has a lot of experience. She will play any position I need her to play."

Other leading hitters for Laurel include Williams (.560), junior Natalie Bishop (.545), senior Jasmyn Walker (.459), freshman Bria Wallace (.430), sophomore Jamila Mitchell (.389), senior Casey Li Causi (.385) and junior Kevia Walker-Humphries (.365).

Laurel High makes history in baseball

Roosevelt scored two runs in the top of the seventh at Laurel High on Wednesday but the Spartans nailed down the final out and held on for an 8-7 win. It is believed to be the first time Laurel has ever beaten Roosevelt in baseball, according to long-time Laurel Athletic Director Terry Parfitt.

Roosevelt is annually one of the top public school programs in Prince George's County.

Laurel pitcher Alex Hanavin picked up the win and had seven strikeouts. Anthony Nicome of Laurel had two hits, two runs and drove in three runs. James Bell of Laurel had two hits and drove in the game-winning run as Laurel improved to 7-3 overall. The Spartans are slated to face Flowers on Saturday.

Pallotti baseball returns from South Carolina

The Pallotti High baseball team played last week at a tournament in Rock Hill, SC. The Panthers came back home and on Wednesday they beat Park, 13-4, as Steve Martin had three hits and Matt DeFrank, Eddie Johnson and Corey Dirks each had two. Dirks was the winning pitcher, as he allowed no runs in six innings.

The Panthers are slated to play Friday against CHEN at Joe Cannon Stadium in Harmans at 4 p.m. Pallotti hosts Annapolis Area Christian on Saturday at Panther Park in West Laurel, then plays Monday at 4 p.m. against St. Mary's of Annapolis at Joe Cannon. Pallotti hosts Glenelg Country of Howard County on Tuesday.

Pallotti softball falls

The St. Vincent Pallotti High softball team lost, 11-4, to Notre Dame on Thursday. The Panthers were coming off an 8-6 loss on Tuesday to Annapolis Area Christian School.

Pallotti is 1-8 overall and hosts Chapelgate Christian of Howard County today, April 29, in the Senior Day game for the Panthers at Fairland Regional Park in West Laurel at 4 p.m. "My issue this year is not having strong pitching," first-year head coach Laura Horstkamp told Patch on Friday. "We are facing hitters that are catching up to" our pitching.

Pallotti ends regular-play with two games next week, both at 4 p.m. at Fairland: on Monday against Notre Dame Prep and Tuesday against non-league foe Elizabeth Seton of Bladensburg.

Pallotti High players at McDaniel

Lauren Fusco batted leadoff and played right field while sister Beth Ann batted second and played shortstop for McDaniel College in a 5-1 loss at Messiah on Thursday in college softball. The sisters are former players at St. Vincent Pallotti High. Both players were hitless in three at bats as McDaniel fell to 14-23 overall this season.

Megan Lott, another former Pallotti standout, is a senior outfielder for Division III Gettysburg (PA) College. She started 34 of the first 36 games and is hitting .287 with four home runs.

Stewart with College of Charleston

Laurel resident Travis Stewart, a former standout pitcher at Pallotti High, has pitched in just two games this season for the College of Charleston. He has been bothered by arm problems during his college career at the Division I school.

One of his teammates, Daniel Aldrich, is one of the top freshman hitters in the country. An outfielder, Aldrich is hitting .392 with 15 homers. Another freshman on the team is Brandon Glazer, a pitcher from Hagerstown.

Pallotti football camp

Ben Thompson, the new varsity football coach at Pallotti High, will hold a camp this summer in Columbia for ages 9 to 14 from July 19-21. For more information contact Thompson, a graduate of the school, at 443-822-3662 or football@pallottihs.org