COLUMBUS — West Lowndes High School has never hurt for students with natural athletic talent. The only problem, as West Lowndes softball coach Anthony King sees it, is most of the female athletes have gravitated toward basketball and track and field.
Kelsia Rogers has given future Panthers another option.
Rogers became the school’s first fast-pitch softball signee Friday when she signed with Coahoma Community College.
“I feel like now that this record has been made, every other girl that plays softball is going to try to obtain this,” Rogers said. “They’re going to want to go, sign and play softball for a college.”
The big moment for the program comes after King’s first season as the team’s coach, one in which he admits he was building for the future. Then he discovered the value brought by Rogers and her classmates.
“When I first went out there I wanted to start a bunch of young girls and build with them,” King said. “I didn’t think the seniors were going to be as good as they were, but they surprised me. We brought up a lot of 7th- and 8th-grade girls because we want to have them in the program for a while.”
Rogers used the roster makeup as an opportunity, taking it upon herself to be of influence in the program even after her departure.
“She used to help out with coaching. She would teach kids different fundamentals,” King said. “She was very valuable to the coaching staff, also, because she would teach girls how to bunt, hit and the proper form of fielding and throwing.”
More than helping the program’s future, she filled more than her fair share of holes for the team in 2017. King played Rogers at pitcher, catcher, shortstop and the outfield in the spring and watched her succeed at all of them. Coahoma CC has decided to let Rogers specialize as a catcher.
“When you think about Kelsia, the more repetitions she gets the better she’s going to be,” King said. “I think she’d be a better outfielder or infielder: she’s got a strong arm, she can run the bases well, she does everything well.”
Rogers admits she will miss being used in so many different roles. But it’s a small sacrifice to make to continue playing the only sport she played in high school.
“It’s amazing because I never thought I would be in his predicament,” she said. “I worked so hard and I questioned myself, but my coaches pushed through and helped me out through the season.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Brett Hudson on Twitter @Brett_Hudson
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