LAKE COUNTY >> If Aly Ferguson or Tymeka Green ever decide to open up a yardwork business, a good name might be We Can Rake.
Ferguson, the senior shortstop for the Middletown Mustangs, and Green, the senior third baseman for the Kelseyville Knights, swung two of the hottest bats in the North Central League I during the 2018 softball season, leading their teams in several categories.
Lower Lake coach Chris Emberson said Ferguson was the “toughest out” in the league after Cloverdale’s Tehya Bird, the most valuable player in the NCL I. And once on the basepaths, Ferguson was a disruptive force like few other baserunners in the league, according to Emberson.
Clear Lake coach Doug Wingler said another element of Green’s game, her stellar defense, shut down the Cardinals’ slap-hitting attack in the two league meetings between the teams this season.
“She took everything away from us,” Wingler said.
Green and Ferguson, who will seen be headed off to college – Green to Shasta and Ferguson to Chico State – are the co-most valuable players on the 2018 edition of the Record-Bee’s All-Lake County softball team.
Ask county or out-of-county coach their impression of Kelseyville and Middletown and you can expect to hear the names of Green and Ferguson come up first in almost every instance.
Kelseyville, which had the deepest reservoir of talent among Lake County teams in 2018, finished second in the league standings behind champion Cloverdale (13-1) with an 11-3 league mark. Middletown tied Clear Lake and Fort Bragg for third place, all at 8-6, followed by Lower Lake in fifth place at 6-8.
First team
Joining Green and Ferguson on the All-League first team are sophomores Allison Bryan and Paige Bour of Kelseyville, the Clear Lake trio of senior Regina Faalelea, junior Sara Ogden and sophomore Shaelyn McIntire, Middletown senior Abi Murphy and Lower Lake sophomore Shelby Sapeta.
Second team
The All-County second team wasn’t short on talent either. From Kelseyville, junior Grace Davidson and senior Bib Hamner join Lower Lake juniors Mikelynn Rowe and Lily Griffin. Also making the second squad is the Upper Lake trio of junior Cheyanne Obedoza and seniors Julia Mooney and Adrianna Saldana, Clear Lake junior Madi Ferguson, and Middletown senior Gracie Armstrong.
Upper Lake’s Cougars, a member of the NCL II, finished 3-3 in league play and 5-10 overall under first-year coach Nick Williamson.
Coach of the Year
In his first season as Kelseyville’s head coach, Phil Psalmonds directed the Knights, league champions in 2017, to a runner-up finish in the NCL I and a berth in the North Coast Section Division IV playoffs where the Knights routed Albany 22-8 in first-round action before losing 7-3 to No. 1 seed and eventual Division IV champion St. Joseph Notre Dame of Alameda in the quarterfinals.
The Knights finished 17-5 overall.
